Team Academy
by ThatClerk
Summary: When Sophie Hannigan, a middle-class girl from Ohio, receives a scholarship to one of the most prestigious schools in the world, she thinks everything is finally going her way. But she quickly learns that things at the Academy don't quite seem as they appear and she finds herself in a Cat & Mouse chase to find answers.
1. Chapter 1

Looking around I had the feeling I wouldn't fit in. Why I thought I ever could, was beyond me. I looked around seeing the sign Park Avenue in front of my face. The taxi driver turned around and gave me a hard look.

"You sure this is the place?" he asked, doubtfully. I had the strongest urge to rip my parchment paper invite out of my duffle bag and staple it to his forehead.

"Yes" I forced through my teeth. "How much?"

"$57, 30" he said, looking back at his dashboard. I pushed a clump of dollar bills through the opening of the plastic shield and got out. I grabbed my wheelie bag out of the boot and slung the strap of my duffel bag over my shoulder. I gave one look back at the taxi when it drove away. I was sticking out like a sore thumb that was for sure. Compared to the other students' summer dresses and polo shirts with chinos with expensive insignias and their Louis Vuitton wheelie suitcases and Chanel clutches that were carried by their chauffeurs to the gate, I looked like some homeless person who got lost on the subway with my unintentionally ripped jeans and band t-shirt from Dangerfield. I sighed and grabbed my suitcase a little tighter. I had as much right to be here as they did, I might not be as rich and my father may not own a small country but I belong here at least intellectually anyway.

When I had told my father that I was coming here, he had the usual confused, vacant look he always has.

"What? Isn't that in New York?" he asked, cocking and eyebrow. His expression then altered and he let out a light chuckle.

"Oh, I see. You're making a joke, you almost got me, my dear" he chuckled some more. When I told him I was serious and handed him the cream parchment paper that stated that I, Sophia Hanigan, would be invited to join The Imperial Academy of Excellence for the reason that my application scores were among the highest of the Whitlock Grant applicants, my father's face turned to shock, his mouth opening slightly.

"This is great! Sophie, I'm so proud of you. Why didn't you tell me you were applying though?" he asked, his eyes peeping over the paper.

"Dad, you would have said that you could easily afford that school but rich, pompous teenagers would only teach me wrong values" I said.

"And I stand by that argument" he said with a smile.

"Dad, you're a computer technician. Not that I'm not happy for all the things that you've been able to give me, but that school costs 5,600 a month, my Grant covers the whole year" I said, proudly.

"I see, so you don't need your ol' pops then huh?" he said, getting the child-like look in his eye.

"Of course I need you, dad. You can come and visit any time in New York, there are a bunch of festivals and Galas that take place during the year, and families are especially invited" I said.

"But all the way in New York, Soph? What did your mother say?" he asked.

"She doesn't know, dad. She's in West Africa and she's always too busy to call" I said, looking out the kitchen window. I father sighed and followed my gaze.

"Fine, you can go. Just be careful, New York isn't like Ohio, alright? And I'm expecting you to show those tooty-snooty rich kids what's up" he said with a sad smile. I squealed and ran to hug him.

1 month of fatherly preparation and endless bottles of pepper spray, a two hour flight and a long cab ride later I was looking through the iron gates that seemed to weave and dodge through each other making a giant web of steel flowers and vines. It was beautiful, but very over powering. I stood there until the last of the black Lexus and Mercedes were gone. I walked in, trying to look like I belonged, trying to look like everyone else did. Inside the gates was a giant courtyard, framed with hedges and rose bushes. The roses were all peachy coloured and the flowery scent clung heavily to the air. There were small fountains in each corner of the courtyard and a bronze statue right in the middle of a woman with a rippling dress and windswept hair. Her face, cold but still beautiful was facing towards where one of her arms were extended to. I looked in its direction and caught someone else's eye. Our eyes clung to each other for a while, following a straight path of an invisible string that held them. It was a boy, around the age of 13 or 12. He was wearing a turquoise polo shirt and chinos with dark brown loafers. He was lanky, had big light grey eyes, an adorably cute roundish face and a mass of dishevelled fawn- coloured hair. He gave me a wide toothy grin and I couldn't help but to return one.

He turned to his side and pulled on the sleeve of someone who looked much older than he was. Another boy- maybe 17- looked at him and followed his gaze to me. My eyes widened as a look of annoyance crossed the older boy's face and he turned back to his other chattering friends with a cold expression. The older boy had dark hair cropped short at the sides but left a little longer on top which he gelled up into a slight faux hawk. He had deep set eyes that were almost as dark as his hair and he was quite tall. He almost seemed uncomfortable being around his own friends. He was wearing a pale green button down shirt with dark jeans and expensive sneakers. I didn't know if the two boys were related, they looked too different and their personalities were polar opposites.

"I heard she scored a 98 on her test" I heard a girl whisper behind me. My ears pricked and I froze.

"That's impossible, nobody can get that" whispered another.

"We'll let's hope her grade is better than her dress sense" another snickered. The group erupted in muffled giggles and guffaws.

I could feel my cheeks turning redder and my eyes start to sting. I will not cry, I wouldn't give them the satisfaction. I swallowed my tears and cleared my throat but before I could say anything, a steely grip formed on my shoulder. I looked to my side to see a girl with shortly cropped platinum hair and a sharp stunning face. My mouth dropped open as I looked at her attire. She was wearing a long Maxi dress, with a purple and red paisley pattern and ballerina flats. She spun me around so could face the three girls snickering at me.

"Let's hope _your_ grades reflect more studying and less of your late night drinking, Macy. And let's not forget, she is wearing a much better outfit then what you wore to last year's end of term ball, huh, Kyra? Oh and Isabelle, you're father still owes my father an explanation to why he hadn't shown up for work yesterday, please remind him, would you?" she said with a bell like voice that rang through the court yard so everybody could hear. The three girls didn't move for a moment, they exchanged quick looks and the girl named Isabelle gave a nod. They skulked away whispering with sharp forked tongues as they went.

"Well, well. I would say that you have just survived your first encounter with Gregory's body guards" she said. I turned to her with a cocked eyebrow.

"Who?" I asked.

"Gregory DuPont, the boy over there" she said, freely pointing at the dark-haired boy that had given me a cold glare.

"Him?" I asked, incredulous. She giggled and hooked onto my arm like a trap.

"Yes, him. Those girls are his self- proclaimed body guards, even though he'd rather not have them at all"

I nodded. "I'm Clara Devereaux by the way" she said, pulling me a little closer with a smile.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Sophia Hanigan" I mumbled out with nervous laughter. We walked around the courtyard on the cobble stones.

"Something tells me that you aren't from New York. Where are you from?" she asked.

"In Ohio, a place just outside Columbus. It's called Westerville" I said.

"Well I'm from New York" she said. "Born and raised in Manhattan" I nodded.

"Then why do those girls do it? Follow him, I mean" I asked, looking at Gregory out the corner of my eye.

"Their jealous fans mostly, completely star-stricken by his good-looks" she smirked. I couldn't deny that he was handsome.

"And the young boy next to him?" I asked.

"Young boy? Hah! That's what he's got all the new students thinking. That's Elliott Hartley, and he is 17, same age as Gregory" she said with a sly smile. I stared at her wide eyed.

"But how?" I asked.

"I guess it's the boyish charm of his and of course that adorable face. But he has the body of a teenager, see?" she said with a wink. I looked and she was right, he may have been lanky but he was as tall as the rest of the boys and he had a lean build on him.

"Come with me, we'll find your room!" she said, dragging me behind her like some scraggly doll. She pulled me towards a white sand stone building with marble pillars supporting the grand roof which showed a large pictorial on the front which had been carved into the stone. It showed a Greek god riding on a horse drawn carriage.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" asked Clara, following my eye. "This one may be my favourite one out of all the sculptures and paintings here" she said.

I followed her inside into an ice cool reception area where the floors were black marble and the walls were white. Several paintings hung on the walls, some I recognized and some I hoped were prints but I had the slight feeling they weren't. Two white stairs ran from either side of the room on either side of the reception area. In the middle was a dark oak table that made a circle in the centre of the room and two secretaries were busily typing away. There was a lean, black leather couch with silver bars put at the side and a bonsai tree. Clara ran to one of the secretaries and ran the bell.

A woman with silvery hair and a sharp, belligerent face looked up at her and smiled coldly.

"What can I do for you, Ms. Devereaux?" she asked in a high pitched voice.

"Could you please give me the room numbers and buildings for myself and my friend, Sophie Hanigan?" she asked politely. The receptionist leaned to the side and stared at me for a moment.

"Are you the scholarship applicant?" she asked. I nodded, my cheeks reddening. She leaned back and started to type on her keyboard.

"Ah yes, a Ms. Hanigan is in the West Building, room .22 and you are in the St. Peters Building, room. 10" she said, handing two shiny keys to Clara.

"Thank you, do you know who we are rooming with?" she asked handing me my key.

"Ms. Hanigan is rooming with a Ms. De Luna and you will be rooming with Ms. Hildebrandt" she said.

"Again?! But I roomed with her last year as well" moaned Clara.

"Stop acting like a little rich girl, Clara" said a velvet voice from the door way. I turned, seeing Clara run past me and leap into the boy's arms.

"Felix!" she shouted with a wide smile. She kissed him on the cheek and pulled him towards me with an unwieldy strength.

"Felix, this is Sophie. She's the scholarship winner" Clara says in excitement.

"Pleasure" said Felix, shaking my hand and giving me a warm smile. He had a slight roll to his r's, giving me the idea that he spoke spanish. He had coffee coloured skin with black hair that fell in curls around his eyes, black eyes with heavy brows and eyelashes. He was dressed more conspicuously then others with some jeans and a tight black v-neck shirt with white Lacoste sneakers.

"Did I hear De Luna?" he asked.

"Yes, that's my roommate's last name" I said, with a small smile.

"Ah, you must be rooming with my sister, Nora then" he said.

"Your last name is De Luna?" I asked.

"Sure is. Have you heard of De Luna fruit and Vegetables? My father runs the farms and factories. It's a family business" he said with a smile. I simply nodded, trying not to get ahead of myself.

"You're always talking about it" said Clara, with a playful smile.

"Would you rather we talk about you?" I said. I hadn't realized I said the words until they came out. I cursed my sarcastic ways to hell. What happened to not getting ahead of yourself, Sophie? I waited for the down pour of angry sneers but instead I was showered by laughs. Clara was giggling and she grabbed my arm to pull me in tighter and Felix high fived me while he snickered.

"I wouldn't be surprised" said Felix.

"There's nothing wrong with being spoiled. You just need to be able to keep your head above the things you own" said Clara.

"But you do have a lot of stuff" said Felix, with a sly smile.

"That I do, but I am way to mature and classy to be pulled in by all that" she said.

"Except for the ponies" Felix added.

"Yes, except for them. I wouldn't be able to live without my ponies" she said with a pout of her lips. I cocked my eyebrow at them and smirked.

"Sorry, we tend to go into our own little world when we see each other" he said with a smile. He hugged Clara once again and waved us a goodbye, going up one of the staircases.

"So, who's he?" I asked.

"I see that look on your face, Sophie. He is but a friend" she said with a mischievous smile. We walked outside and took a sharp left through a stone arch way, following a cobblestone path past smaller courtyards and rose bushes.

"The West Building is this way and mine is on the other side" she said.

"It's too bad that our buildings aren't close. It would have been nice to know at least one person" I said, frowning.

"I know but don't worry. Nora is really nice" she said, smiling at me.

"Maybe we'll have some classes together" I said.

"I doubt it unless you're taking fourth year math" she said with an apologetic smile.

"What? You're in twelve grade?" I asked, a little surprised. She shrugged and nodded.

"Well yeah. So is Gregory, Elliott and Felix" said Clara. "Nora is in third year with you. Each grade has their own dorm building and also different uniforms"

I had completely forgotten about the uniforms. At my old school back in Ohio, we would come in plain clothes. None of the students really liked the idea of wearing uniforms but I never really minded it. We came to a stop in front of a building that looked like the courtyard building. It also had the white stone walls and marble pillars but there was no pictorial. _West Building _was carved there instead.

"Here we are" Clara announced. "If you follow this path back and take the first right, you'll find the Dining Hall where everybody eats. Maybe we'll see each other there" she said, giving me a hug. I hugged her awkwardly while she squeezed me like we were old friends. I watched her go and then turned to go in. The doors were large and made entirely of glass. I pushed on aside and came into a large oval shaped room with a bunch of other students roaming around with their bags. The carpet was a cream colour and the walls were a deep burgundy and bronze busts and paintings were scattered among the walls. A grand white stair case, about 5 metres wide led up onto the second floor and from there were several passage ways that disappeared into the darkness. I looked around, a little nervous to be alone.

"Do you need help?" asked a low voice from behind me. I turned and nearly jumped a metre. It was Gregory, looking at me with those dark eyes that I could now see was a deep cerulean.

"No" I pushed through my locked teeth, trying to calm my heart from beating like a drum. "Shouldn't you be at the fourth year dorms or something?" I said, a little annoyance flooding into my tone. He smiled lopsidedly and took the key from my hand. I stared at him, angrily as he checked my room number.

"Ah, room. 22 is up the stairs, to your left and down the second passage. Left side is girls, right side is boys. If you are caught outside your room on the left or the right side after 11 pm, you will be in trouble so please stay in your room after hours" he said with a smug smile. I grabbed my key from his hand and put it in my jean pocket.

"Thank you but I didn't need your help or your speech" I said.

"It's my job. I'm part of the school council. I was assigned to helping students finding and settling into their rooms" he said, arrogantly. He turned without another word and disappeared into the crowd. I smirked angrily. Who does he think he is? I didn't need him, rude bastard.

I followed his directions anyway. A few times I thought of walking around after hours just to annoy him but I decided not to because that chance of me getting in here was already a one in a million. Down the small passage there were other doors on either side as well. Ours were the second one on the right. It was a normal wooden door but with a doorbell at the side and two name holders screwed on the side with our names in them. Seeing my name there made this all real for me. The whole time here, I was thinking that it had been a mistake or that I didn't belong, but that name tag proved that I was supposed to be here and that this was my room. I wouldn't lie, it felt good. I unlocked the door and the sweet smell of roses wafted out. I walked in to see the windows of an alcove all open and a gentle breeze blowing in. In the alcove were benches with a thousand small matching pillows scattered around it. One bed was by the large French wardrobe and the other by a dresser. The carpet was cream and the walls were biscuit and the beds were beautifully made up with silk linen and puffy duvets and there was a door leading to an ensuite bathroom. A girl that sat in the deepest corner of the alcove looked up from a book and smiled cautiously. I could see straight away that it was Felix's sister because she also had the heavy eyelashes that seemed to be so heavy that she couldn't keep her black eyes open, and her pitch black hair fell around her face and neck in wavy curls until they fell past her shoulders to her coffee coloured arms. The length was astonishing; mine only came up under my shoulders.

"Hey, I'm-" I began.

"Sophia, I know. I'm Nora" she said, not standing up to shake my hand. I stood there awkwardly for a moment.

"I met your brother" I said, trying to make conversation.

"Really? We'll, I apologise if you weren't prepared" she joked, not lifting her eyes from the book. I nodded and after a moment had enough.

"What are you reading?" I asked.

"_A Thousand Splendid Suns_" she said, still not looking up. I sighed and threw my bags on the bed next to the dresser.

"If you need my laptop, just use it" she said, pointing in the corner of the room without looking. I followed her gesture and saw there was an oak table with a laptop on top of it.

"Thanks" I said, unzipping my bag. "But I'm more of a paper and pen kind of girl" I said.

"Respect" she said with a smile, still without lifting her eyes. Must be a good book. After I unpacked my things there was a quick rap on the door. Nora didn't get up to open it-damn lazy rich girl- so I stood up and opened it. Leaning against the threshold was another boy who was smiling, his brilliantly white teeth glow which was a little disturbing. He had the brightest green eyes I had ever seen though and he seemed around our age. He was cute, especially when he smiles one of his normal smiles.

"Oh, hey. I was looking for Nora" he said, surprised to see me. He had a strong British accent. I opened the door more and threw my thumb in her direction. He walked in, his hands in his pockets and still smiling.

"Nora, can you stop reading for five minutes and introduce me to your roomie" he said, swiping the book from her hands. She slapped him hard on the arm and pouted.

"I lost my place now" she moaned.

"Introduce! Now!" he commanded, taking a cautionary step away from her.

"Introduce yourself, you twat!" she said with a flat English impression. He laughed and wagged his finger at her.

"I see you've been practicing" he said. Were all rich kids like this? Their always caught up in their own little worlds, throwing sarcastic comment after sarcastic comment at each other.

"I'm Sophie Hanigan" I said, pushing my hand into his to shake. He laughed and shook my hand.

"Nice to meet you, Sophie. I'm Dylan Wright" he said with another of his wide smiles. He ran his hand through his bristly blond hair.

"Wait, Wright as in _Wright Financing and Insurance_?" I said, eyes opening.

"Ah, yeah. But it's mostly just my dad being a tyrant" he said, laughing. He fell on Nora's bed and pulled out his cell phone.

"What's your number, Soph?" he said, calling me by my nickname. I pulled out my old cell phone from my pocket and scrolled through it. I gave it to him and he smiled.

"Now if you ever come into trouble, you know who to call" he said with a wink.

"Yeah, the police so they can arrest your stalker ass" said Nora, flipping through the pages of her book. He wagged his finger at her again and tutted.

"Oh yeah, sorry. _Arse_" she corrected.

"That's better" he said laughing. "Got to go, before Wesley realizes I locked him in the bathroom" he said, racing out the door.

"That boy. I bet this year will be the year he gets expelled" Nora said after a moment, finally putting away the book.

"How come?" I asked.

"He should have been expelled a while ago actually but he's father keeps paying the school extra to keep him in, plus he's a great student, always on honour roll. He just doesn't want to be here, he doesn't want to take over his dad's company" she said.

"Really? But that's a guaranteed job" I said.

"Yeah it is, I guess. But the job is full time, seven days a week. He has no time for anything but work, breathing and eating" she said, lounging on her bed.

"I don't think it's that bad" I said.

"Think about it this way, would you give up your dream to do something you hate for the rest of your life?" she asked me, drilling into my eyes. I shook my head, unable to look away.

"Exactly. Dylan is mostly stubborn about it but he's not like his father. He's kind and caring, two things his father lacks" she said with a frown. I frowned too and sat on the corner of my bed.

"You might think that we're all spoiled little rich kids that get whatever we want whenever we want and you are the only one that works for your right to be here and in some retrospect that's true but we do have dreams and even though you have to give up your wants because you need money, we need to give up personal things that we hold dear to cater for others" she said, straight. She wasn't afraid of me, but she wasn't naive of me either. There was an understanding there that we had of each other.

"I get it. And I didn't think that. I just think you guys are kind of lazy" I said, not losing eye contact. She tilted her head back and laughed.

"Yeah, that's true"

That night after a five star dinner in DuPont Hall, I felt a strange sensation that I was more ignorant then they were and I didn't like it. The thought that I may be the one that needs a reality check was weird enough on its own, but with the idea that I needed it more than some rich kids struck me even harder.


	2. Chapter 2

I was woken up by the sound of the shower. I sat up, feeling the tangles of my hair hit against my back. I stood up groggily, feeling my way around the room for my cell phone to check the time. It was 8.00 am, which nearly gave me a heart-attack. I was going to be late for my first day of school. I ran to the dresser and started pulling out random shirts and clothes when Nora came out and stared at me for a while. I stopped to look at her. She was wearing a towel knotted around her body and a towel on her head.

"What?!" I almost snarled, it was too early to have manners.

"What are you doing?" she asked, calmly.

"Trying not to be late for school!" I said, throwing out another shirt.

"If you're looking for your uniform then you won't have much luck" she said, opening the door and removing a plastic bag that had been hanging on the outside handle. I stopped looking, embarrassed that I had forgotten again that we wore uniforms. I feared one of these days I'd forget about the uniforms and wear normal clothes to class. She opened the bag and threw a uniform on my bed.

"Thanks" I muttered.

"You're welcome" she said politely, taking hers into the bathroom and shutting the door. I looked down at the uniform, flicking through the clothes. There was a white collar button down shirt, a black tie, a navy jacket, a short grey skirt and long burgundy socks that came up to my knees and shiny black shoes. It didn't look half bad, now at least I'd look like everyone else. I wondered how the other grades looked. The school colours were red, black and blue, kind of like bruises. I brushed quickly through the tangles in my auburn hair, trying to get the frizzy bits to become wavy like the rest. I re-adjusted my tie for the millionth time and made the bed. The whole time I hadn't noticed Nora watching me from the bathroom threshold.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"What does it look like? I'm making my bed" I said, pulling the covers taught.

"We have maids that come in to do that" she said, picking up her school bag from the floor. I sighed and grabbed my new Longchamp bag that I had bought for almost all of my salary at Booksmart, a bookshop where I worked as a clerk. It was an attempt at matching up, though I felt stupid afterwards for buying it.

"Where do we get our schedules?" I asked outside the door when she was locking it.

"We'll get them at homeroom. Do you know your homeroom?" she asked.

"Yeah, room 103, Mr. Sven" I rehearsed. I had studied it so I wouldn't forget.

"Cool, you're in my homeroom. Once we get our schedules, we'll see what else we have together" she said, smiling at me. I smiled back, grateful for her kindness. Lord knows where I would be today if it wasn't for her. We walked outside the building and met Dylan leaning against one of the pillars outside with his IPod. He looked up and smiled at us.

"Hey, guys" he said, falling into step next to Nora. "How'd you sleep?" he asked me.

"Fine" I said.

"Cool, Nora wasn't snoring too loud, was she?" he asked, mockingly. Nora's movements were too quick to follow, but in one moment, Dylan was crouching on the ground, holding his side.

"I feel the love" he groaned out. Nora kept walking, unperturbed except for the triumphant smile on her face. I helped him up and he hissed in a breath. I could see that he was wearing the same coloured jacket on as us with a white shirt, a black tie and some long grey pants.

"I swear that girl should be in the Navy" he said, with a dazzling smile.

"They said I was too advanced" said Nora. Dylan smirked and fell back into step with us.

"Where's Wesley?" she asked.

"Still sleeping, he wants to take the night classes" said Dylan, frowning. It was the first time I had seen him frown, it looked a little awkward.

"Night classes? Now?" said Nora, cocking an eyebrow.

"Yeah, but I wouldn't be too worried about it. He knows his way better around school then most people" said Dylan with a shrug.

"So did Remy, and look where's he ended up" said Nora. Dylan shushed her and looked at me.

"Some kid disappeared on the school grounds two years ago during night classes. Nobody ever found the body but we think he just decided to run away. There was a story going around that he had an arranged marriage to Kristin Mason in grade 12 and that he didn't want to get married after Kristin graduated" said Dylan.

"Arranged marriage?" I asked. I thought those things were over and done with after the 19th century.

"Yeah, old rich families still practice it now a day. It's quite common in the school, actually. They do it so its stays 'blueblood' and that there's money" said Dylan. I frowned but said nothing.

"By the way, what homeroom are you guys in?" he asked, digging out a piece of paper from his pocket.

"Mr. Sven" said Nora.

"Me too!" he said, giving her a high five. "We'll be making trouble this year" he said with a wink.

"No, I got to focus. This is my second last year, expulsion is not an option" Nora said.

"What about you, Soph? Are you up for some food fights, graffiti and a nice trip to see the Dean DuPont?" he asked with a wicked smile.

"No, I'm here on scholarship. I'm walking a thinner ice then you" I said, chuckling but then I stopped, replaying what Dylan had said about the Dean. DuPont? That's Gregory's last name as well. Were they related?

We kept walking down a rain soaked path even though it was August. New York weather puzzled me sometimes. We came to what seemed a huge stone building with other more modern buildings scattered around it.

"Where do they get the space?" I asked, amazed.

"This school's land has been in one family for ages. They just kept building on, not allowing any other buildings or skyscrapers that was not owned by the family to be built here" said Dylan.

"Guys, enough history. We need to get to class" said Nora, starting to race towards to stone building. It looked like something out of Harry Potter, with its dark stone walls and malevolent lights that hung in heavy iron cages. Inside was completely different though, the walls had been plastered over with white and the floors were shiny stone. We walked down one hall with several sliding doors that had numbers on them. We stopped at a classroom where the door was already open. Nora and Dylan walked in and I followed sheepishly. The classroom looked like any other, normal desks and a white board except with large windows that opened up to a Japanese tea garden. My mouth fell open and Dylan chuckled.

"The Art class sometimes get to sketch there" he said, pointing out the window.

"It's amazing" I said, wide- eyed.

"Would everyone please take their seats" said a rough voice with a slight Slavic accent. I looked to the front, watching a man around the age of 30 with short black hair and fierce dark eyes. He was handsome but in a brutal way. I sat down immediately at the nearest seat. I was happy to get one at the window. Everyone else did the same and the room filled with squeaking chairs and muffled comments.

"For those who do not already know, I am Mr. Casimir Nowak. Remember where you sit because that is your seat for the rest of the year" he said, drilling into each and every eye of the students.

When I looked around, I nearly kicked myself, Norah and Dylan were sitting all the way at the door and I was on the other side by the windows. I felt a pair of eyes on me and I turned around to face the front. It was another boy, with chocolate coloured hair that he gelled like a bed head, tanned skin and lazy hazel eyes. His skin pinched between his eyes as he focused on me. He didn't smile but he didn't frown either. He didn't look happy but he didn't look sad or angry either. He was assessing me, like I was some kind of puzzle that he thought he could unlock with a focused stare. I raised my eyebrow at him and he turned to the front finally.

"Sophia Hanigan?" asked a voice. It took me a while to realize why and by that time everyone else was already staring.

"Here" I managed to say, trying to ignore all the curious looks. The only pair of eyes that were really bothering me were the only ones that weren't on me at that moment. The guy that stared at me earlier, hadn't even shifted in his seat.

"Elias Hassani?" asked Mr. Nowak.

"Here" said the boy who had stared. His voice was deeper than anyone else's I had ever heard and it was rough. He seemed less refined than the other boys, like he was raised differently to the other rich people here. Someone like me.

As Mr. Nowak went through everyone else's names, I stared at this boy. I had decided that I was going to ask this boy what his problem was as soon as the bell rung. When the bell did ring, my stomach was turning already. I looked around as I stood up but he was nowhere to be seen. He must've already been outside the classroom. I pushed passed a few people to get to the door and when I finally broke out of the crowd, he wasn't there either.

"Well that's annoying" I muttered to myself.

"What is?" asked Nora from behind me.

"Never mind. What do you have now?"' I asked her.

"Fourth year math" she said nonchalantly.

"What? How?" I exclaimed.

"Cause' I'm good at it. You probably have math as well" she said. "I'll see you later" I watched her walk in the opposite direction as everyone else. I decided to follow everybody else. They lead me up a flight of stairs into another huge hall with classroom sliding doors. I dug my schedule out of my bag and look at the room number of my math class. I went down the hall until I came to room 120. The door was already slid open and I could see some students inside chatting with each other. I sat down nearer to the door this time and looked around at the people in the classroom.

"Hi, do you mind if sit here?" asked a little voice. I looked up into a pair of wide blue eyes.

"No" I mumbled, looking at this strange girl. Her skin was almost translucent and her blond hair had curls so tight that they looked like springs. She was absolutely adorable though, like Elliott. It was hard to accept that she was my age. She sat down, folding her hands on the desk. She seemed as frail as rice paper as she opened her DKNY tote which looked bigger than her.

"I'm Sophie Hanigan" I said, sticking my hand out to shake hers. She looked at it and smiled.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Dorothy Coleman" she said, shaking my thumb with her whole hand. She didn't seem to know what to do with it. I turned to the front eyeing her cautiously. Her smile was kind and her sky blue eyes absent minded. A hand came crashing down on my desk and I cringed. I peeped up from the hand to see who had enough nerve.

"Well hello there, Trailer-trash" said the girl with a sharp tone that could cut through glass. It was that girl from yesterday, Macy I thing her name was. Everybody turned to look at us and my cheeks reddened.

"Leave me alone, please" I muttered, looking down at my bag.

"Not so tough without Clara, are you now, Trailer-trash?!" she hissed so everyone could hear.

"My name's Sophie" I forced through my teeth, clenching my hands into fists.

"Whatever, Trailer-trash. Why don't you go back to your trailer park in Ohio and leave us alone?" she asked, snickering. I wanted to fight back but before I could let words out, I felt my eyes start to sting and the urge to cry was uncontrollable.

"Stop it, Macy" said Dorothy's frail voice.

"Or what, Princess?" she teased. I could feel tears roll down my cheeks, leaving warm trails.

"This attitude is extremely unflattering, Macy" said another voice. I didn't dare to look up, to show my tears would be worse than fighting back.

"Aiko…" murmured Macy.

"Now why don't you leave her be?" said the same pleasant voice. There was no reply but I could feel her menacing shadow lift from over my head, but I still didn't look up. A gentle hand took my arm and helped me from my seat.

"Come with me" said the voice and I followed obediently. "Dorothy, would you please let Mrs. Johnson know that I escorted Ms. Hanigan to the nurse"

"Yes, Aiko" said Dorothy.

I followed this Aiko out the classroom and down the stairs till I could feel the cold breeze outside. The hand sat me down on a bench.

"You can look up now, nobody will see your tears" said Aiko. I did, sniffling and whipping away the tears.

"I'm Aiko Miyamoto" he said, sitting down next to me and handing me a clean white handkerchief.

"Thanks, I'm Sophie" I explained.

"I know, you're the scholarship winner. They spoke of you in the Student Council" he said, with a warm smile. "It's an honor to meet such a brilliant person"

I was taken aback by his words. "Thank you" I replied sheepishly. I could see that Aiko was Japanese, with his pitch black hair that seemed almost purple that came to his jaw and his almond shaped eyes that were the same color. It was a sharp contrast to his whitish skin. He was very refined, like a prince almost, quite handsome too. I wondered why he was the one without the body guards and Gregory had them.

"Are you really going to take me to the nurse?" I asked him.

"No, I just needed to come up with an excuse to why we weren't going to be in the classroom when she arrives" he explained chuckling. I sighed and he stuck his hand out for his handkerchief.

"I shouldn't of cried" I said.

"You shouldn't have listened to Macy. What she had was blind hate, she needed someone to blame and you were the kinder target" he said, smiling. "Unlike Clara, you would've have been courteous and let her scold you without fighting back"

"A little too courteous" I muttered.

"It's never a bad thing" he said, smiling warmly again. "I have lost a little respect for Macy, while gaining a hoard for you"

I smiled and nodded, a little more confident knowing that I had made a good impression on one person today already.

"Are you ready to get back to class?" he asked.

"I guess so" I said, getting up. We returned to class, but the teacher was not there yet so we no longer needed the excuse. The class was polite when I came back in. Nobody stared or said anything, not even Macy who sat as far as she could from Aiko. When I sat back down, Dorothy gave me a gentle smile. After class, I had Biology, and I was happy to see Dylan had already saved me a spot next to him. He smiled as I came closer.

"How was math?" he asked, his eyes concerned.

"Wow, news travels that fast?" I asked him, sitting down.

"Faster than light. Rich kids tend to be a little gossipy" he explained at his own expense.

"It was fine. Aiko was very kind to help me like that" I said, smiling at his name.

"Ah, _the Prince_ strikes again, I see" he said, a mischievous look in his eye.

"What do you mean?" I asked him.

"Well, Aiko is obviously the heroic-type, don't you agree? Saving the fair young maidens with his debonair charm and looks" he said, giving a lop sided smile. "He's always been like that, kind and generous. He's an honour student, in the student council, fencing club and the school orchestra. God knows, my parents would love me to be like that"

"I think everybody's parents would want their kid to be like that" I said. "Wait, did you just say fencing club? As in with swords?" I asked, cocking my eyebrow.

"Well yeah, but not with real swords. Fencing club is one of the hardest clubs to get into, you need at least two years of fencing training to get in, plus its invitation only" he said, rolling his eyes.

"What club are you in then?" I asked.

"Varsity football, but I guess you Americans call it soccer" he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Are you going to try out for a club?"

"I don't know yet. I played a little basketball at my old school but that's it" I said. He smirked and looked at me up and down.

"You? Basketball? Sorry to burst your bubble, but we don't have a girl's basketball team" he said.

"Seriously? Why not?" I asked, pouting.

"Most of the girls are fine with physical education, athletics and archery here" he said. "Most of them don't really like the contact sports" he said.

"Oh" I said. "Well what else can I do?" I asked. I haven't always been the best runner.

"Well, you don't have to do a sport. Some people go to the Performing Arts Center and take music classes or art classes or they join the Drama club. Other people join the usual options like the Academy's Newspaper club, chest club or the Fundraising club" he said, counting on his fingers.

"Fundraising? Don't you guys have enough money?" I joked.

"It's for the Academy's clubs, each club throws a party on the birthday of Jane Whitlock and students and parents go to each club and donates money. The school doesn't pay to keep the club running, so the students have to. The fundraising club just helps them out" he said.

"Jane Whitlock as in the Whitlock grant?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah, her story is notorious here" he said, with a wink. He opened his mouth to tell me but the teacher tapped her ruler on the whiteboard and smiled at all of us.

"Can you all please take your seats" she said, her face kind and rippling with wrinkles. Her hair was as white as powder, which she tied up in a bun at the back and her eyes were an electric blue.

"My name is Dr. Hellenes" she said, smiling at us. One thing was for sure, her name didn't suit her at all. Sometime during the lesson, I had gently elbowed Dylan and said "She should be called Dr. _Hella-nice_" under my breath. He snickered at my awful joked and whispered back "I'll have to teach you some good jokes or else you'll never survive"

Biology seemed to go quickly and before I knew it, I had World Lit. I didn't have this class with Nora and Dylan, so we sat in a row. Dylan spent the whole class distracting us until Nora kicked him under the table. He didn't move a muscle after that. The rest of my classes were pretty ordinary, except for Economics, because that boy named Elias had chosen the seat right behind me and I could feel his stare burn through my head. But before I could question him after class, he had already disappeared.

"Sneaky little bugger" I whispered under my breath. At lunch, I was completely on edge, looking around for Elias. Nora had noticed my nervous disposition.

"What's wrong, Soph?" she asked, biting down on her red apple.

"Nothing" I said, looking passed her, at a group of guys. He was not there either. She cocked her eyebrow but said nothing. Dylan wasn't with us, he saw a group of his friends and decided to follow. A long pale arm wrapped around my neck and I could feel platinum hair tickle my cheek.

"Well, hey there Scholarship" I heard a bell like voice ring. I turned around, smiling at Clara.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked her, my mood suddenly light.

"Nothing much" she said, smiling at me and Nora. "How's your day been?"

"Uneventful" I said, looking away.

"That's not what I heard. I heard Macy von Crazy was being her usual snotty way to you" she said, her eyes turning sympathetic.

"It's okay, it was sorted out" I said, trying to end the subject.

"Whatever you say" she said. Nora stopped and looked at her watch.

"I got to go" she said. "I'm meeting Felix for lunch in the city" she said, starting to head for the Academy's exit.

"Wait, how? You won't make it back in time" I said.

"We have a double free after lunch" she said. "You're welcome to do whatever you want"

I looked around, feeling a little alone.

"That's great! You can come hang out with me!" said Clara, ecstatic. _Not so alone anymore_ I thought with a small smile.

"You have a double free now too?" I asked, raising my eyebrow.

"Yeah, but seniors call it the 'Lounge' period" she said, making little air quotes. "We have our own common room where a bunch of the seniors hang out, I'll take you there" she said, smiling and starting to pull me in the direction of the St. Peter's building.

"Are you sure they'd want me there?" I asked, looking around desperately.

"Sure, we all want to meet the Scholarship girl! Our school only lets one in every year, unless there's a person who received the same entry scores" she said. I gaped, taking in what she had said. Was I really the only scholarship person here? Great.

What I was expecting was just a normal room that the twelve graders had set up for themselves because it was their final year. I was expecting a few beat up couches, armchairs, a boom box and a few posters and magazines lying around. I should've known better. Clara had dragged me outside a large dark oak door that had large golden handles. She opened it and pushed the door lightly to a large room. The rich cream carpet stretched around the room and the walls were wide windows, and light was flooding though them. There were two large plush sofas and armchairs and a coffee table in the centre. At the back of the room was a small stereo to my relief and another group of armchairs and several bookcases filled with dull colored books. On the west side of the room were a soda dispenser and a shiny coffee machine. It was a large observatory, and a reserved chandelier hung from the roof.

There were people scattered around, most of them stared, while others glanced now and then. I didn't know if I was either paranoid or correct but I swore I could see at least a few eyes looking at me in annoyance. I had to look around a few times to see a pair of eyes that seemed as harmless as a child's. Luckily, Clara was headed for them. It was Elliott who was sharing one of the large couches with no one. He had a beautiful china cup in his hand and he smiled at us. When I sat down on the sofa, I nearly sank in, because it was so soft.

"It is nice to finally meet you" he said, smiling. "I'm Elliott" he said, extending one of his lean pale arms. I shook his hand, slightly dazed by him. He had a more calming effect on me than I realized. His voice was as light as a feather, and it seemed to sway in front of my face before entering my ears.

"Hi, I'm Sophie. I hope I'm not intruding" I said.

"Think nothing of it, juniors make frequent visits here" he said, lifting his tea cup to his lips. After taking a long sip, he sighed.

"I hope you weren't disheartened by my friend-Gregory's- bitter disposition. He tends to be distant even at his best" he said.

"Oh, it's fine" I said, biting down on my tongue.

"Where is dear Gregory, by the way?" asked Clara.

"He's at a council meeting, but he's hardly ever here in any case" replied Elliott.

I felt a prick on my neck and I quickly slapped it. Imagine my surprise when I realized it was someone's hand. My hand froze around my neck as I turned to look. It was a boy with fiery copper hair and golden eyes that were as wide as mine.

"You have very quick reflexes" was all that left the boy's mouth.

"Connor, you should know better than to play pranks on her" said one of the girls in the back.

"Yes, you might contract a feral disease or something" said a boy near the group and they all cracked up laughing. My cheeks reddened, and I lost my calmness that Elliott had caused before. I looked up to see Clara's angry face, her eyes like darts, but it was Gregory who spoke first.

"Connor and Percy, I'm not too surprised that you two were acting like complete idiots already. But really, Percy. That comment you made is so shallow, even for you" he said, his sharp voice like razors. Gregory was standing at the doorway, looking in on us like we were bickering children whom he had to discipline.

"Oh, come off it. I liked it better when you weren't in the Lounge at all" said the boy named Percy. I could now get a closer look at him. He was handsome in a way that was unappealing to me, like he tried too hard, with so much gel in his gravity defining hair and his lovely mouth that turned into a malicious smile as he hissed at Gregory.

"Why? Because now someone can teach you manners, the manners that your parents failed to install because their never around" Gregory said. Percy's knuckles turned white as he stormed towards Gregory.

"You talk an awful lot for someone whose own parents left him on his uncle's doorstep!" spat Percy, his face so close that Gregory leaned back slightly. Clara stood up from the couch, her mouth set in a frown that seemed to be carved in. Gregory's eyes shifted from Percy to Connor.

"You should leave before you regret saying something else" he said, his voice so low, I hardly could hear it. Percy looked like he was about to fight back for a second or two but he took a step back and rolled his shoulders.

"You should be smarter than to bring in family matters, Gregory" said Percy, pushing passed him. Gregory grabbed Percy's arm and held him for a second, his eyes as black as coal.

"It wasn't my parents choice, it was yours though" he said, throwing Percy's arm back at him. Percy kept moving though, but his face was a little redder. Connor followed wearily behind him, his eyes on his feet. It was silent after a few seconds until I opened my mouth.

"Thank-" I began.

"You should leave as well" he said, his voice harsher now. I paused, staring at him in angry bewilderment.

"Excuse me?" I asked him, quietly because I was afraid that my voice might crack from fury.

"You shouldn't have been in here in the first place, you caused this" he said, his harsh tone turning into annoyance.

"That's a little unfair, don't you think Greg. They were the ones who started it" said Elliott, his calm tone seemed to have no effect on Gregory.

"But isn't he right?" asked a chilly voice from the back. A tall languid girl walked forward, her head tilted to one side. "I mean it is a rule after all. I wouldn't appreciate for a pup without a pedigree to trudge around my common room personally" she said with a wicked smile. I stared at her in awe, not listening to what she had said. Her face was framed with the darkest of hair and her eyes were bottle green and glassy, with lips that were crimson and full. Her skin was perfectly smooth and tanned.

"Veronica-" Clara almost hissed. She said the name like a warning. I had finally realized what this girl had meant and my face lost its dazed expression and turned angry.

"Oh, I didn't mean to affront, I just merely mean that you will have your own time when you are older and more refined" she said, with another of her chilly smiles. She chose her words delicately but well enough that I could follow the undertone.

"Let her thank you, Gregory" said Elliott, uneasily looking at Veronica.

"Yes, I think you should accept her thanks and-" began Clara.

"Be quiet, you should have known better then to bring her in here. She doesn't belong here" he said. What did he mean exactly with _doesn't belong here_? I stood up, straightened my skirt and put an arctic expression on my face.

"I had a nice time, you guys. I'll be going now" I said, pushing passed him and Veronica and giving her a glare as I went. I walked out with my head held high but as I continued out the building, my shoulders began to sag more and more.

After my classes I returned to my room and stayed there, skipping dinner. When Nora asked, I blamed it on homework but I really just didn't want to face Connor, Percy and Veronica in the dining hall. I didn't particularly want to see Gregory either.

I sat on my bed, thumbing through a magazine when I heard a short rap on the door. I stood up, checking if Nora had the key. When I opened the door, a figure rolled from the wall to face the open door. I nearly slapped the door shut if he hadn't rest his hand on it.

"Are you angry with me?" Gregory asked, his voice low. I bit down on my lip so hard, I drew a little blood.

"Why would you care in the first place? Is student council reelection coming up?" I said bitterly, looking away from his gorgeous face.

"No, I wouldn't be too worried about one lost vote" he said.

"How conceited of you" I said, feigning admiration.

"Not conceited, but realistic" he said, taking a step into our bedroom.

"What are you doing here, Gregory?" I asked, irritation coloring my tone.

"I wanted to apologize" he said. "I was rude to you this afternoon, I didn't mean to be so blunt. I'm sorry" he said, his eyes open and honest. I stared at him for a while, caught off guard.

"Apology accepted" I murmured.

"Good, but this doesn't mean you are allowed to be in our common room" he said, heading for the door. When he closed the door silently behind him, I grunted in exasperation. What a self- absorbed, arrogant, naïve bastard! Who does he think he is?! I wish he could be dropped off somewhere in a back alley and get his ass kicked! That'll teach him! Egotistical son of a bitch! I paced across the room bitching inwardly while growling out loud for a while until my throat hurt and my mind couldn't come up with anymore insults or profanities.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day went a little better. Sure, the story about what happened in math was circulating but it was nothing I didn't expect. When I was walking to Art, Clara had caught up with me between classes.

"Listen, I'm sorry" she said, her face completely culpable.

"What? Why?" I asked.

"I should've have stuck up for you more, or at least walked out with you" she said, smiling at a girl who walked past. It was surprising how easily she could change face for others, a quality that I didn't trust so much. "You handled it better than any posh, blue-blooded person I know"

"Thank you, Clara. But you really don't need to apologize" I replied, knowing all too well that I handled it better than most of these brats. If I could act like a decent person than they can too. I was sick of putting on a brave face for these people, if they want to fight than bring it on!

"I got to go, we'll hang out during lunch, okay?" she said, giving me a quick wave and disappeared before I could answer. I sighed, walking to the art room through the beds of roses on either side of the path, alone. I heard quiet, poisonous whispers behind me and I knew instantly that they were talking about me. Why? Because I could hear the shrill laughter of one Ms. Macy von Crazy behind me.

"Well, look here! If it isn't the Prince's pet walking all alone" she blurted and her companion muffled her laughter. I kept walking, keeping my shoulders back and proud.

"Why, did Aiko let you off your leash?" said Macy, running up next to me. I turned to face her, my face not hiding one bit of the pure hatred and anger that was bubbling up my throat. I didn't know how intimidating I looked but her face suddenly turned cautious and she retreated to the flanks of her friend with a few steps.

"Well, what are you going to do know without somebody to fight your battles?" she asked, her tone maliciously biting at me.

"I don't need anyone to do that for me. If you hadn't noticed, you self-righteous bitch, I've been nothing but understanding towards your complex" I spat back. "But that's about to change, so If I were you, I'd pick my next words as an apology"

"Who do you think you are? You cheap- looking piece of trailer trash!" she hissed through clenched teeth.

"My name is Sophie! How slow do you have to be to not understand?!" I retorted, taking a step closer.

"Please, get her away before she starts foaming at the mouth!" she shrilled to her friend in disgust. I could feel the insults try to break loose from my guard and my knuckles contract and loosen in anticipation for that first punch. Her friend ripped my bag from my shoulder and it spilled across the wet concrete path. They both broke out in laughter, while I knelt down to pick up my things, my face turning bright red.

"Take a good look at where you are because that's where you belong" mocked Macy, looking down at me with scornful eyes. I stared up at her and I stood up and slung my bag over my shoulder.

"Listen, Macy. I don't know what your problem is but I'm over this, so when you're finished with acting like a spoiled child, I'll be at art waiting for you to apologize" I said, walking away in quick long strides. I heard her scream a profanity in my direction in desperation but I was already too far to care, I just flipped her off while I walked away, a triumphant smile on my face.

"You'll regret this! You hear me?!" she screamed. "You can kiss you're scholarship goodbye!"

But none of her words reached me, I was too stubborn and proud to care.

We had the chance to sketch in the Japanese tea garden which put my mood through the roof. I was so happy, I hardly noticed Macy and her friend following me everywhere I go with their disdained eyes. I was busy sketching a cherry blossom tree and I walked closer to get a better view, when I saw Aiko sitting under the tree on a marble bench. He fit so well there, like a piece from a beautiful puzzle. He saw me and smiled gently, his dark almond shaped eyes kind.

"Hi there, Ms. Hanigan" he said, his pleasant like voice ringing.

"Hey, Aiko. Are you sketching the tree as well?" I asked, pointing my pencil to the dark wood with pale pink blossoms.

"No, I just love the scent is all" he said, taking a deep breath. I did too, smelling a faint sweet but tender smell clinging to the air. The roses were so much more pronounced then the blossoms. He looked at me again and tapped the spot next to him with his pale hand.

"Sit" he said, smiling. I did as I was told, feeling a little awkward next to someone so perfect and graceful as Aiko.

"How are you since yesterday?" he asked.

"Fine, I had a run in with _her_ again but it was nothing I couldn't deal with" I said.

" That would explain the knives they are throwing at your back" he said with a small chuckle. "But keep your head high. My father always says 'beautiful tone, beautiful heart'" he said with another lovely smile.

"Thanks, Aiko" I said, blushing. He looked down at my drawing.

"May I see?" he asked and I handed him the sketchbook.

"You're very good" he said, looking from the drawing to the tree.

"Ah no, it's just a quick sketch" I said, flustering again.

"I would much rather look at your Sakura tree than the real one" he said, looking at it with a far-away expression. "So tell me about yourself" I said. He smirked lightly.

"There isn't much to say" he said.

"Well, I heard you're on the fencing club and in the orchestra" I rambled off. "That's something"

"Well, I like to fence but not as much as I love to do kendo. And I play the violin" he said.

"Wow, I would love to know how to play an instrument"

"The school has a music program. You should check it out" he said with a smile. "We have a double economics off this afternoon so we can visit all the clubs. Their showcasing for new students"

"Really? Cool, I'll come over sometime" I said. We spoke for a few minutes, attracting a few curious eyes but I didn't mind.

"Ms. Hanigan" said Mr. Baptiste, our art teacher, in a haughty tone. "Dean DuPont has asked to see you". I turned and looked at him wide eyed, my face burning in humiliation and confusion.

"What? Why?" I asked, my heart racing nervously.

"I don't know, child. He sent only one of his messengers to take you" he replied, waving me away. "Go now"

I stood up warily, glancing back at Aiko in anxiousness. "It will be fine, Sophia. Go, you don't want to keep the Dean waiting" he replied reassuringly with a light smile. I nodded in determination and walked towards the garden's exit that met the cement path.

"Told you you'd regret it" muttered Stacy as I passed her. I ignored her, a shiver running down my spine. As I turned down the path, I saw a boy with golden eyes and fiery copper hair approach me. He had been waiting for me against the wall. I spotted him and my voice flooded with irritation when I spoke.

"What do you want?"

He stopped and his eyes flickered around. "Hi, I'm supposed to take you to Dean DuPont" he said, his cheeks tinted with red. "I'm Connor McDermott, it's nice to meet you" he said, trying to shake my hand but I crossed my arms tightly. He had a slight accent, maybe Irish.

"I know who you are" I replied icily. "Where's your friend Percy?"

"I didn't mean to scare you yesterday, I was just playing around. I didn't know Percy would act the way he had" he explained, the redness in his cheeks darkening. "I'm sorry"

"It's okay, I guess" I murmured, I hadn't expected him to apologize.

"_Slàinte_" he said with a small smile.

"What?" I asked.

"It means cheers" he replied, nervously. I nodded, taking a closer look at Connor as we walked in silence. His blazing hair was short and messy and small wisps fell in front of his eyes that he constantly had to flip back and his golden eyes burned in the same intensity as his hair. I followed him to the same white sand stone building with the marble pillars that Clara took me to find my room number, and walked in. We stopped at the secretary's desk and she looked up at us with beady eyes.

"I've brought her" said Connor. She turned to stare at me with a cocked eyebrow.

"I'll tell him you're here" she said, picking up the phone. She spoke to him softly and I couldn't hear her words.

"He'll see you now, Ms. Hanigan" she said with a nasally voice. Connor turned to me.

"Up the stairs and take a left, it's the only door" he said and walked off. I stared after him, becoming even more nervous. My heart pounded loudly in my chest as I took deliberately small steps closer to the Dean's office. My head was reeling as I cursed my temper to the fiery pits of hell. I should have ignored Stacy, I wouldn't be in this mess if I had just kept my mouth shut. I came to two large black doors and stared at the gold plate with the Dean's name on it. So his name was Marcus, huh? I knocked on the door, wondering if he could hear my knocks.

"Come in" came a deep muffled voice. I reached for the wrought iron door handle and pushed the door aside. I had to look around the large office to find him. He was standing by a large bookcase-one of many- holding an open book in one hand, another taking off his reading glasses. He wasn't anything I didn't expect, he was surprisingly close actually. He had the same dark cerulean eyes as Gregory and the dark hair, accept his was highlighted with a few silvery strands and the corners of his eyes and mouth had lines carved into his pale skin, I bet he was handsome when he was younger.

" Ms. Hanigan, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm Dean DuPont" he said, his deep voice as velvet-like as Gregory's.

"Hi" was all I could get passed my lips. My nerves were sparking and heat rose up my back.

"Please have a seat" he said, gesturing to a sitting area that was on the other side of the room. I sat on the luxurious couch and he sat in a royal blue armchair, framed with dark wooden carvings. He looked at me through heavy brows but his smile didn't waver.

"I'm sorry for not seeing you earlier, I have been busy. But, I am glad to have such an intelligent student here at the Academy" he said. "You've been grabbing a lot of attention, welcomed and unwelcomed I see"

"I'm sorry, Dean but if this has something to do with Stacy-" I began.

"It does" he said, his smile turning wicked. "She came with a complaint that you had been extremely rude towards her. Whether this is the truth or not, I'll let it slip this once Sophia but if it becomes a habit, there will be consequences" he said. I nodded because something in his tone had silenced me. His menacing eyes and cold smile left no room for discussion, what he says goes.

"I also wanted to welcome you the Academy and I was wondering if you'd like to join us for dinner on Saturday evening" he said. "At my home of course. It is tradition for the new Scholarship Student to join us on an evening as a welcome. Can you attend?"

"Yes" I said, feeling excitement and fear roll into me. "I'd love to"

"Splendid. Now Sophia, I believe you should be getting back to class" he said with another icy smile in my direction.

At lunch, I hung out with Clara and Nora, though Nora's nose was between the pages of a new book called _The Swallow_. When the bell rung for double period eco, my heart thudded in excitement and nerves as I followed a group of new students to some of the school's clubs. I first visited the Academic clubs like the chess club, the _mathletes_ and the Book club. None of them really appealed to me so I followed another group to the I.T and School Newspaper clubs. I wasn't to great with computers and the hectic, caffeine- induced demeanor of the journalists put me off. When I got to the huge gymnasium that looked to be more fitting of Olympic gold athletes than students, I saw that the only sports that I could sign up for was the swim team, the athletics team and the gymnastic team. I wasn't good at any of them and the haughty grin of Veronica in a leotard as she made her way into the gym gave me the creeps. I decided to find the performing arts center and see what they had to offer. I followed a narrow path, twisting my school map as I moved through the school. I stopped in front a large modern building and as I opened the glass door to a swirl of music that danced towards me. None of them we're playing the same song and some instruments were louder than others, overpowering the beautiful chaos pounding through the building. I took the stairs two the second level, looking in on two art classes. I decided to sign up for art because I liked to draw and I was pretty good at art at my last school. I walked past the drama club and through the hall to the exit and stopped at the convulsing dark melody of a piano. I stopped and found myself following the this one sound among all the others until I established its location. I looked through the small window of the wooden door into a huge octagonal room with a beautiful black concert piano in the middle. I stood on my tippy toes, trying to see the face behind the keys and when I did, my heart jumped up my throat. It was the boy, Elias. His face was serene, a mask, as his fingers fluttered effortlessly on the keys. I stared, unable to look away, drawn in by the music. It was beautifully heavy and lulled my heart beat to slow. I leaned my hands on the handle and accidently put too much weight on it and the door glided open and I followed. The door handle disappeared from my grip and I fell on my hands and knees. The music stopped awkwardly and I was brought back from my calm existence into humiliation.

"Can I help you?" came the same deep coarse voice. My head tilted up slowly, heat rising up my back.

"Hi…" I murmured. Elias stared at me in irritation and stood up from the piano, shutting it a little too forcefully. I scrambled up quickly, clearing my throat. "I didn't mean to interrupt you" I said, my cheeks turning red.

"Well, you did" he said, looking at me with a cocked eyebrow.

"Listen, pal! There's no need to be rude, it was just an accident. I don't see you showing any shame , its rude to stare ya' know?" I said, irritation coloring my tone. He looked at me, his gaze turning from annoyed back to assessing me.

"Why were you staring anyways?" I asked because the room had become silent. He shrugged, looking at me like what he was doing was perfectly normal.

"No reason" he answered, nonchalantly. His eyes flickered, he was hiding something. I pressed my tongue to my cheek, keeping my lips shut.

"May I leave?" I asked, after a long silence. He smiled and my heart fluttered as his hazel eyes deepened.

"Sure, I'll walk with you" he answered.

"That's fine. I know where my room is" I replied, turning to the door.

"So? I know where mine is as well. What's your point?" he commented sarcastically, following me out the door. My heart quickened as he quickly matched my speed as we went outside, following the wet path that was strewn with autumn leaves. I remembered that he hadn't been in homeroom this morning.

"Where were you this morning?" I asked, curiously.

"You mean in homeroom?" he asked and I nodded. "I don't take day classes anymore" he replied solemnly. "I take night classes"

"But isn't that…" I began.

"Dangerous?" he finished, his jaw tightening. He looked at me at the corners of his eyes and gave a cautious smile.

"Well yeah. I heard a kid disappeared a couple of years ago on campus during night classes" I said, a shiver running down my spine. "Why are you taking night classes?"

"Why the sudden interest?" he asked, side- stepping my question.

"You're the one who wanted to walk with me" I replied, giving him a rueful look. He chuckled darkly and cleared his throat.

"To tell you the truth, I'm not very interested in the night classes" he answered. "I took them because I was interested in the disappearance"

A cold hand clasped over my heart and I turned to him. "So you're the school detective? Do you work for the newspaper?" I asked, cocking my eyebrow.

"Something like that" he said, smiling. "I have a taste for mysteries and the truth. But no, I don't work for the Heather-borough Times" he confided, his eyes darkening. I nodded, not knowing how to reply. "I thought you were someone else on the first day, but I was mistaken when I overheard people saying you were the scholarship student" he explained. "Someone mentioned in the sealed case files"

"You thought I was a suspect, didn't you?" I said, putting two and two together.

"I received a photo from a source of someone who was with the victim a day before his disappearance" said Elias. "The girl in the photo looked like you, though it was a little blurry at best" he explained.

"So you're basically trying to figure out what happened to this kid?" I asked. He turned to me and gave one nod.

"But you can't tell anyone. People don't like when the past is brought up, especially not at this school" he said, his face turning stony. As we continued towards our dorm, a girl walked past us and I could see Elias' disposition become uncomfortable. I eyed her inconspicuously. She was rake thin and her dirty blond hair fell dead strait to her shoulders and her bang hovered over her eyes. Her skin was almost as pale as Aiko's and she had deep bruise-like lines under her eyes from sleepless nights. She looked like even a small breeze could blow her over. When she was finally out of hearing distance I asked Elias "Who is that?"

"That's Kristin Mason. Remy Kerr's ex-fiancé" he answered darkly.

When we arrived at the West building, Elias walked me to my door. We stood outside awkwardly while I dug around my bag for my keys. Once my hand found them, I unlocked my door, my hands nervously clambered around.

"Well, I'll see you around" he said, with a small smile and turning on his heel.

"Wait" I blurted, without thinking. His head swivelled around.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Be careful" I murmured, my heart beating loudly. He gave me a lopsided grin and his eyes burrowed into mine.

"I will be" he said and walked to his room. By Saturday, my head was reeling over Elias, Kristin and the fact that I have dinner at my Dean's house. I took a shower, washing my hair and making sure I was so clean that I wouldn't have to shower for the next month. In a white towel that was wrapped tightly around my body, I stared at my clothes. I had nothing to wear, nothing.

"What's wrong?" asked Nora, sensing my nerves.

"I have nothing to wear tonight. I'll have to go in this towel!" I exclaimed. She chuckled lightly.

"Borrow something of mine then?" she said. I turned to her closet, knowing all too well it was filled with Chanel, Donna Karen and Dior.

"No, I can't do that" I murmured.

"Sure you can. I borrowed your scarf the other day, didn't I? And those adorable pumps" she said.

"Yeah, but we're talking about a whole getup here, Nora" I said, feeling my cheeks burn. Her expression turned soft when she realized what was wrong and she draped one of her coffee colored arms over my shoulder.

"Sophie, don't feel embarrassed about borrowing my stuff. Their just clothes" she said, pecking me on the cheek and swaying off to her French wardrobe. She opened it and took a short nude colored dress, with a strapless bodice that was adorned with black lace that flowed down over the skirt and placed it over her bed. She took out a pair of black heeled booties and a black fur shawl and she smiled at me.

"Wear that" she said. I gaped at it.

"I can't wear that, I'll ruin it" I said.

"No you won't, Sophie. Please, I only wore this once" she said, bring it over to my bed. "It'll be a waste if you don't wear it". I put it on gingerly, trying not tear anything, luckily she was my size and the booties fit well. I tied up my auburn waves into a loose bun, letting tendrils fall around my face and tied the shawl around my shoulders.

"You look gorgeous" she said with a smile. Our bell rung and Nora opened the door for Dylan who stared openly at me which made me feel a little good.

"You look amazing" he breathed, eyeing my up and down. "The car is outside the gate, waiting". I turned, taking a look at myself in the mirror. In spite of myself, I looked quite pretty. I just whipped under my brown eyes again for stray mascara. Dylan walked me to the front gate of school, chattering on about school and the Dean.

"Here we are" he said when we reached the black Mercedes sedan parked outside the gate. I gave him a one arm hug and got into the car. The driver didn't say a word as we drove through the busy city streets. I looked up at the skyscrapers, dazed by the lights and people in this city. We passed a taxi filled with girls, shouting and laughing and another car with a small Indian family gawking at them. The car turned down a quieter street and stopped in front of a tall apartment building. The screen between us rolled down and I saw the driver stick his head out.

"Top floor" was all he said and the screen rolled up again. I climbed out quickly, watching him speed away. I walked gingerly to the glass doors, gripping my shawl a little closer. Inside was a sleek desk with a man in a suit behind a computer. He looked up at me and smiled coldly.

"Welcome back" he said. I smiled at him, happy that I could trick someone into thinking I belonged here. I took the large elevator up to the top floor and stepped out into a hall way. There was only one door, resembling the one at Dean DuPont's office funnily enough. Again I took deliberately small steps, my nervous heart beating in a frenzy. I rung the golden door bell on the side of the door and it clicked open. Standing in the threshold was Gregory. I didn't know why I was so surprised to see him, he lived here after all. Maybe it was because I hadn't thought he would be here or maybe it was because he looked very attractive in a black button down shirt that had a white placket going down the front, white cuffs and a white collar, tight black trousers and a pair of shiny black patent leather shoes. He's usual faux-hawk was left without gel and was neatly combed. He hadn't said anything either when he saw me, instead he stared at me, his deep cerulean eyes softening.

"Hi" I murmured politely.

"Good evening" he said, clearing his throat. "Come in"

I brushed past him, walking into a huge living space that was darkly lit by a crackling fireplace and a several candles dotted around. It was modern, with dark sleek couches, glass tables and interesting light fixtures. There was a soft classical song playing and I smelled cinnamon and vanilla all through the air.

"Something smells good" I commented.

"That's the dessert" said Gregory plainly, he looked a little uncomfortable. "Can I take your shawl?" he asked and I shrugged it off and handed it to him.

"Go straight down the hall and take a left. My uncle is in there" he said, hanging my shawl on a steel coat hanger by the door. I followed his directions, walking through the hall. There were pictures aligned on the walls on either side and I stared at the smiling black and white faces. I recognized the Dean and Gregory instantly, but there was a woman in the picture as well. I looked closer, squinting my eyes at the radiant face.

"That's my aunt" said Gregory from behind me. I jumped, my heart leaping into my throat. My cheeks turned red instantly, and I tried not looking at him.

"Is she here tonight?" I asked.

"No. She left" he answered, ending the conversation. He continued walking, without a glance back at me. I decided to follow, I didn't want to be seen snooping around. I guess when he said she left, it meant they were divorced because I saw no wedding ring on the Dean's hand when he came to shake my hand. He was also dressed immaculately in a white dress shirt, a loose bronze tie and a dark navy suit.

"Dinner's almost ready so follow me to the dining hall" he said, smiling coldly. He had a steeliness about him that made it hard to say no, it was just easier to comply. The long dining room table was set with candles and pretty cutlery. The food was absolutely amazing, first course was scallops in a cheesy garlic sauce and we were now on our main course, shredded duck with plum sauce and spring onions. Conversation was stilted, most topics were about school and if I was enjoying it. I only really started to regret the evening when questions turned to my family.

"How is your parents dealing with your absence?" asked the Dean, looking intently at me. I took a sip of water, trying to delay the reply so I could come up with something to say.

"Oh, my dad's fine with it. He says he misses me a lot though" I answered, forgetting to mention my mom because I never had to before. The Dean seemed to pick up on it and his one eyebrow rose slightly.

"And your mother?" he asked. My eyes widened and my mouth opened slightly as I tried to think of a response. My head was telling me to lie but my stomach told me to tell the truth and my face somewhere in between took on the _deer in headlights_ look.

"Umm, well…" I began, my heart going fast again.

"Is your father visiting you at the _Parent- Teacher _dinner in a month?" asked Gregory quickly. My eyes flickered to his intense ones, noting that he changed the subject and that he also only mentioned my father.

"Ah, yes. Your parents should come to that, it would be a great chance for them to see the school" commented the Dean happily.

"I would hope so, it would be nice to see _them_ again" I said, trying not to make the same mistake. "I think they'd love the school, especially the Japanese garden" I explained, trying to move over to the garden.

"That garden is beautiful, isn't it? It was actually Gregory's idea to add it for the art students" said the Dean and my eyes flickered once again to Gregory but his were focused attentively on his food. "He spent the whole summer researching Japanese Tea Garden designs and constructing plans and such"

"That's amazing" I commented. "It looked like a professional planned it all". At that moment Gregory looked up at me and he gave a small smile.

"Thank you" he murmured, a pink sheen blossoming over his cheeks. The phone started to ring and I heard Dean DuPont get up.

"Excuse me for just a moment" he said, with another cold smile and left the room. We ate in silence, but my eyes would always end up sliding towards him and catch his eyes that were on me as well. The Dean returned, a blackberry pressed to his shoulder.

"I am sorry, Sophia but I have to take this call" he said. "Dessert's ready, so you two can have that in the sitting room if you'd like. I apologize again" he gave a small bow of his head as he left the room and I was alone with Gregory.

"Go ahead to the living room so long, I'll come with the desserts" he said and stood up. The black leather sofa squelched when I sat on it but the fire had made it warm and cozy, and I sat there in the half darkness, finally able to relish in the fact that I was in the DuPonts' home. A few moments later, Gregory appeared with two glass bowls and two spoons in his hands. He handed me one and a spoon and I could smell the vanilla, and sat next to me. It ended up being a delicious crème brulee and I finished it in a few minutes. When Gregory saw my bowl, he chuckled lightly and rested his and mine on the coffee table in front of us. I have never seen him so relaxed before, he seemed so different.

"So I'm guessing you enjoyed the dessert" he said, a soft smile forming on his lips. I smirked and nodded. "It was great"

"I'm sorry about my uncle. He just wanted to know more about your family is all, he didn't mean to pry" he said, apologetically. I was surprised when it wasn't followed with a sneer or a sarcastic comment.

"No, it's okay. Thanks by the way for redirecting the conversation" I said, looking down at my hands.

"No problem. It's actually a habit nowadays from people asking me about my parents" he explained, his deep blue eyes darkening.

"I'm sorry about your parents, Gregory" I murmured.

"Aren't we all?" he asked and a smile broke over his face and his eyes softened again. "I think sorry has been said enough for tonight"

"I agree" I said chuckling. "We are a sorry bunch, aren't we?" he smirked, resting his head against the couch. "I really do love the garden though. I wasn't just being polite" I murmured to him and he turned his head to look at me.

"Thank you. You know, you're the only person who knows about that, nobody else does" he said.

"Not even Elliott or Clara?" I asked. His ears seemed to perk at the name Clara and he turned away.

"Elliott wouldn't be surprised, but I hardly ever speak to Clara these days" he said, almost to himself.

"Why not?" I asked. He looked at me, wide eyed, realizing his mistake and fumbled for words.

"I just, uhh… well, I-" he muttered.

"Is it because you guys don't like each other or did you have a fight?" I pried unknowingly.

"It doesn't matter now" he muttered, his cool disposition returning. "You should probably head home. I'll accompany you" he announced, standing up and grabbing his Iphone. He dialed a number and spoke in a hushed tone. In ten silent minutes, we were heading towards the same black Mercedes that had picked me up. Gregory opened the door for me but didn't look at me and I scooted in and he followed. I stared outside the window, seeing the streetlights and the cars and the city go by. Just when I began to like Gregory, he let a wall fall like an iron curtain.

"You never told me about your mom" he murmured to me.

"What's there to say?" I asked, not looking at him.

"What's she like?" he asked.

"I can't remember" I muttered.

"Okay… what does she do?" he asked again.

"Doesn't matter. She's not here" I said, bitingly. He sighed and stared out of the window again.

"What will another wall do, Sophie?" he asked me, his eyes piercing. "Don't you get tired from building them?"

"Don't you?" I retorted. He smirked and shook his head gently.

"Never" he murmured quietly. "Except when I see Clara. She makes me want to be myself again, the little boy before his parents died"

I stared at him gently, and without think I let my hand curl around his on the seat. It was rather cold and I could feel his tendons under my palm, he smiled a small smile down at our hands.

"How one night can change everything" he smirked. "And here I was thinking you'd never be a friend"

"I was thinking the same thing" I said, smiling.

"You have an old soul, Sophie" he said, smiling a full grin to me.

"You have a middle- aged personality, Greg" I teased and his expression made me laugh.

"Greg? Really? You couldn't come up with a better nickname?" he asked. "And I'm not middle- aged okay? I'm just mature"

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that gramps" I commented and he stuck out his tongue at me.

"Wow, did Gregory DuPont actually just stick his tongue out at me?" I exclaimed, acting surprised.

"Nobody would believe you even if I did" he added, grinning at me again. "See, I can be fun"

"Oh yes, a ball of fun" I commented sarcastically and he flicked my arm. He walked me to my room while I walked and skipped around him, blabbing on about the my old school and Ohio. At points I checked his face to make sure he didn't find me boring but his cerulean eyes were always intently on me and he commented with enthusiasm, he was a completely different person to what I had known before.

"So you don't have boarding schools in your town?" asked Gregory.

"Nope, not that I know of" I answered, reaching for the door handle of my room. I opened the door wide and caught the face of a surprised looking Clara on my bed. First, I didn't make a big deal about it until I felt Gregory stiffen.

"Clara… hey" I said, trying to act nonchalant. "We were just-" I began but she was already heading towards us to leave.

"I don't care for what Gregory does in his free time, Sophie" she said, pushing passed me but I grabbed her hand.

"Clara, it isn't like that" I tried explaining but she ripped her hand away and kept walking, an unstoppable speed train. "Clara!" I yelled, ready to go after her but Gregory stopped me.

"There's no point in going after her, if your caught outside of your dorm now, you'll be in trouble. She'll cool off by tomorrow" he said, his eyes full with authority again.

"Why didn't you stop her?" I demanded. "You should have stopped her!". He sighed and looked passed me.

"Its not like I didn't think of that, okay?" he replied icily. "I just wasn't prepared for this"

"What now then?" I retorted.

"Like I said, we'll leave it until tomorrow, it's too late to go playing _Drama, drama_" he said and turned to leave. "I'll see you tomorrow, Sophie"

I watched him walk away until I heard Nora clear her throat. She was also on my bed, looking at me with a concerned eyes.

"So I'm guessing the night went well until now" she commented as I fell next to her on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. I gave a nod, frowning. It hadn't taken long for Gregory to turn ice cold again, and I had screwed up with Clara too.

"What's with them, Nora? Why are they like this?" I asked, turning my head to her. She sighed and lied down next to me, staring straight up.

"The DuPonts' and the Devereauxs' are two old French families who came to New York about 300 hundred years ago or something like that. They've been family friends for a very long time so Clara and Gregory weren't always distant" she explained.

"You mean they were actually friends?" I asked, surprise coloring my tone.

"Oh yeah, the best of friends actually. Clara's parents and Gregory's parents were really close too. Did you know that the Devereaux family has an old curse on them, since like the 17th century?" she asked.

"No" I murmured.

"Well, it's just an old rumor but a long time ago, one of the Devereauxs' wanted to marry this Gypsy, but when the family interjected and instead made him marry the daughter of a wealthy family, the Gypsy cursed them and every arranged marriage since had either ended tragically or never happened at all. See, Clara and Gregory had an arranged marriage since they were born. The DuPont's knew of the curse but didn't believe in it until Gregory's parents died in the car crash, he was twelve. Gregory's grandparents blamed the Devereaux family and they cancelled the marriage and Gregory wasn't allowed to see Clara anymore. The families haven't spoken since, until Dean DuPont was made Gregory's guardian and let Clara join the school and apologized to the Devereauxs'. But something's can't always be fixed with _sorry_, you know?" she said, pursing her lips.

"But why are they fighting?" I asked.

"When Gregory was told not to speak to Clara by his grandparents, he took it very seriously. The days that he couldn't help but speak to her, he blew up at her, screamed and yelled" she explained, frowning. "He didn't want to upset his grandfather any further, he already didn't like Gregory"

"How come?" I asked, my eyes widening.

"I don't know. All I know is that his grandfather regretted him" she said. "There's a lot of secrets in this school". I stared out of the window, wondering what Gregory was doing now.

"Do you like him?" I asked Nora. She didn't answer, she calmly stood up and went to her bed.

"I'm going to sleep, okay?" she said. I nodded and she crawled under her bed sheets. I sighed, doing the same, not taken my eyes of the milky white moon that hung in the sky. Poor Gregory, Poor Clara I thought. _Poor you_ said my conscious. I ignored it like usual, nothing to be gained from something so cautious.


	4. Chapter 4

I didn't sleep well and when I woke up the next morning at 3.00 am I couldn't find my way back to sleep again. I had nothing better to do than to take a quiet shower and change. I ended up roaming the halls, I didn't really cared too much about the rule of walking around at night now. My head was too busy untying the chaotic knots that Gregory had made. As I walked down the hall next to our rooms, I saw a shape melt away from the darkness and an icy hand gripped around my throat as I held my breath. Who could be sneaking around this early in the morning accept for the sleep deprived? I wanted to follow the shape but fear had taken over, and I found it impossible to move. As my lungs burnt for more air, I took a sharp intake, trying to calm my shallow breathing. I was making way too much noise as I backed away and when I was about to turn out of the hall, I heard hurried footsteps coming in my direction. I froze, not knowing what to do. Either follow the shadow or be caught by whoever was coming at me now. Without another thought I turned and tiptoed as quiet as possible down the hall again, feeling my heart thud harder and harder the deeper I went in. I heard a slight creek and stopped, checking behind me but no one was there. I put my hand over my pounding heart, trying to muffle it. I could feel my blood pumping through my ears and then another creek and footsteps. I breathed in sharply again and started running down the hall, feeling the darkness close around me the deeper I went. Whoever was there, I didn't think it was a monitor. I stopped and pressed myself against the wall, straining to hear a footfall or a creek. The footsteps were coming closer and closer and I had nowhere to go. The hall wouldn't go on any further than a few meters and it was fast approaching. I started sliding along the wall, trying to find a nook or cranny that was deep enough to hide my shape. It must've heard me because the footsteps came in fast thuds down the hall. Suddenly my hand ran past an open space and I pushed myself deep into the cranny, trying to leave no trace of myself in plain view. I heard the steps slow, coming towards me. Suddenly the wall behind me moved and a hand clasped around my mouth before I could scream. A strong arm grabbed me around my waist and pulled me in tight, I couldn't escape. I tried to fight, pushing my arms outwards but the body flipped my around and pressed my arms against the real wall. The other footsteps stopped and a beam of light flashed around the corner. I held my breath and stopped moving. The beam died down and I heard the footsteps retreating down the hall until silence fell completely. Slowly, the arm unwrapped itself and the weight against me lessened but the hand was still covering my mouth.

"Relax, it's me" whispered the person and a shrill ran up my back when they removed their hand.

"Who are you? I can't see!" I hissed under my breath. I turned quickly, seeing the shape take form in front of my eyes.

"Elias" I murmured the name, recognizing his lazy hazel eyes first and then his messy hair. "What are you doing here?" I demanded.

"Not here, come with me" he murmured back, taking my hand and pulling me down the hall again and stopping at the entrance, looking out for the monitor. His hand was warm and strong and my thumb grazed against the tendons. When the coast was clear, he turned left and went past the white stairs to the boys side. I dug my heals into the carpet trying to free me hand.

"I can't be in there!" I hissed at him. He only pulled harder, turning to me and placing a finger on his lips. We went down on of the first halls and stopped at door thirteen. He dug around in his pocket and unlocked the door quietly. It clicked open and he ushered me inside the dark room. He closed the door behind him and turned on the lights and my eyes painfully adjusted. I looked to the two empty beds and turned to him. He was leaning against the door, looking at me with those mesmerising eyes and I was suddenly very aware of how alone I was with him in his room.

"So… where's your roommate?" I asked, turning back to the empty bed nervously.

"He's with his girlfriend back on your side. It's easy to sneak around here" he said, rubbing the back of his neck as he made his way to his own bed. The room was surprisingly neat and smelled a little of after shave.

"Yeah, that why we almost got caught just now" I mentioned sarcastically. He chuckled lightly and slumped onto his bed. "So what were you doing outside?" I asked.

"What were you?" he asked, giving me a lopsided smile. My heart quickened and I fumbled for words. "I asked first" I muttered.

"I was coming back from the St. Peters dorms" he said.

"And what were you doing there?" I asked.

"I was trying to talk to Kristin but her friends keep such a tight lock on her these days, I practically need to have an appointment to accidentally run into her" he muttered, rubbing his thumb-nail over his eyebrow, yawning. "Your turn"

"I couldn't sleep" I said and he cocked an eyebrow.

"So you decided to sneak around the building?" he asked, incredulous.

"I wasn't sneaking around. I was just bored" I explained.

"And completely dressed" he pointed out. "Who were you meeting?" he asked with a wink. I groaned and smiled at him.

"Believe what you want, Elias. But I'm a good girl" I said, putting my hand over my heart and he chuckled again. A silence fell and I could feel his eyes on me, his handsome face staring at me intently.

"Hang out with me a little. I don't get to talk to a lot of people these days" he said, patting the empty spot next to him on the bed. I purposefully sat on the chair by the bureau instead and he shook his head, smiling.

"And why is that?" I asked.

"Because I'm too busy running around for clues. The life of a detective is so demanding" he joked.

"And sneaky" I mentioned.

"I prefer mysterious" he said with a wink and I laughed in spite of myself. He sat up and scooted closer to me and my heart thudded louder.

"So if we're going to make a habit of meeting like this, I should at least now a little about you" he said. "Where are you from?"

"Westerville, Ohio. You?" I asked, resting my head on my hand.

"Well, I was born in America but I moved to Morocco when I was four because my dad is Moroccan and moved back here when I was ten" he explained.

"And did you like Morocco?"

"Very much but my dad wanted me to attend school here so here I am" he said and smiled at me. "How are your parents taking this? You're the scholarship girl right?" he asked. I nodded and sighed.

"My dad's happy for me but I don't know if my mom even knows I'm here" I said. His eyes filled with concern.

"Are your parents divorced?" he asked.

"Separated is what they call it. She's somewhere in Africa I think" I replied. "She left when I was eight and visits me once or twice every year. She works with some aid corporation"

"Sounds like your left in the dark a lot" he commented.

"I practically live in the dark" I replied. He gave me a concerned smile, flashing his mesmerising eyes at me again. I could see now that they were piebald, a mixture of dark green and syrupy gold.

"I'm sorry about your mother, Sophie" he said, sincerely.

"It's cool" I said, shrugging it off.

"It can't possibly be" he replied. "It must be hard sometimes, you can't play tough all the time"

"Got a better idea?" I retorted a little too bitterly. He took it in his stride, leaned forward and before I could dodge it-not that I really wanted to- he tucked one of my loose tendrils of hair behind my ear and smiled warmly at me, his eyes dancing. My head swam as his warm hand sent burning sensations up and down my face.

"You might not think it, but there's something beautiful in breaking down" he murmured to me.

"I bet you say that to all the girls" I murmured back sarcastically, trying to wave off my sparking nerves. I was bobbing around on the surface, trying to clear my mind of all the chaotic worries, insecurities and a little lust as well.

"Always clever, aren't you?" he said, smiling lopsidedly at me. He still hadn't moved his hand and I didn't want him to, it could stay there forever for all I cared. I chuckled and something caught my eye, it seemed to be a photo of me. I leaned away and reached over the table and grabbed, breaking away from his palm and my cheek suddenly felt chilly. It wasn't a photo of me but it looked a lot like me from a distance.

"Is this the photo?" I asked and he nodded solemnly. It seemed he didn't want to break the embrace either. The sudden distance brought me back and my eyes flickered to the his bedside clock. It read 4 am already to my surprise but I really didn't want to leave. He looked at the clock to and sighed.

"You want to leave? I'll walk with you" he said, but something was reluctant in his eyes.

"Nah, I think we should wait until 6 just to be sure" I said and he smiled at me.

"Okay, what would you like to do for two hours?" he asked, a mischievous smile on his lips. We ended up watching _A-Team_, Elias' favorite movie. I didn't get some of the jokes but his laughter was contagious so I laughed a lot. Afterwards when the clock sadly struck 6 am, I had no choice but to go. He walked me back, the halls were empty, which wasn't a bad thing because people would be a little too suspicious towards two students walking around this early on a Sunday.

"I had a good time hanging out with, Ms. Hanigan" he said, when we reached my door.

"So did I, Mr. Hassani, I suppose our alliterating last names aren't the only things we have in common" I said sarcastically and he chuckled.

"I suppose not" he replied. I opened my door just a crack and turned to him.

"Well, I'll see you around" I said, the words coming a little unwillingly. I turned to walk in but he grabbed the door and it wouldn't budge. My eyes widened and he stared from the door to me and back to the door again as if he didn't mean to do it.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to… I just-" he scrambled for words.

"Yes?" I said, a little too keenly. He looked at me with soft eyes and rested his hand against the threshold of the door. He leaned in slowly, our faces only inches away from each other and I could feel his warm breath on my nose and hear the quiet thud of his heart in the dead morning. I thought of lacing my arms around his tanned neck, twirling my fingers in his chocolate coloured hair and forgetting completely about my worries that I had only met him almost a week ago, that my hair was a little untidy from lying on the bed and the fact that I didn't have a spot of make up on. He leaned in even closer until our lips were almost about to graze and I could feel his heart beat against my own. I inhaled the scent of his minty breath, my heart throbbing like a drum and he inclined his head and… then a shrill buzzing sound and we froze. I heard a shuffle in the bed and a groan.

"Sorry, continue" I hear Nora mutter and I would have laughed if I wasn't completely horrified at the idea that she knew what we were doing the whole time. Elias leaned back, his eyes wild and his handsome face a little embarrassed.

"Good bye then, Sophia" he murmured politely and stalked of quickly. I was still against the door, trying to put my head straight. My heart still thudded as I crawled back into the room, shutting the door.

"I screwed up, didn't I?" said Nora. "Sorry Soph"

"You weren't interrupting anything" I lied, trying to push it aside. She let out a short laugh and looked at me through her lashes.

"Whatever you say" she said, giving me a wink. "I'm surprised how many guys you've been able to pull in"

"Excuse me?" I asked and giggled.

"Gregory, Aiko and Elias" she said. "In a one week"

"Me and Gregory aren't like that, and Aiko is just a friend and I hardly know Elias" I said, in spite of myself, I hadn't really thought through any of those relationships before.

"Didn't look it" she replied with a wicked smile. I waved her off and she draped her arms over my shoulders.

"Which one do you prefer?" she asked and giggled when I tried to flick her.

"Can you mature about ten years please?!" I exclaimed.

"It's just a question" she explained. "We've hardly hung out since you became a harlot, lets sight-see today"

"I'm not a harlot and secondly, we had school this week" I said icily.

"I was joking about the harlot remark, Sophie. Stop being a downer, I think some female interaction will do you good" she said smiling at me. I sighed and let my arms drop to my sides.

"Fine" I muttered.

"We'll invite Clara too" she said, brightly. My head swivelled to her.

"Less you forget, me and her aren't on such great terms at the moment" I said.

"I'm sure she's realised her mistake by now" explained Nora. "Everything will be fine"

And with those four words I began to get ready for our touristy day. I put on some make up and freshened up, combing through my hair again. I wasn't tired to my surprise, I felt kind of exhilarated. I've never seen New York City before accept in romantic movies and I was excited to get out of the school for a bit, it was a little overpowering. We met up with Clara in front of the gate and she was smiling apologetically at us when we came closer.

"Sophie, I'm sorry that I stormed out" she said, frowning.

"It's okay, Clara. I should have explained" I replied.

"No, you shouldn't have to" she said as we walked to the taxi. "I don't know why I was so bothered by it all but today we're going to put it all behind us and have some fun!" she said, smiling brightly at me.

"I think that's the best thing that you've said in a while Clara" joked Nora and Clara glared at her.

"I'm just happy to be getting out of that school" I said and they looked at me, wide eyed.

"How come? I would love to be as smart as you and actually understand what the teachers are saying half the time" commented Clara, wrapping her pale arm over my shoulder. Nora and I chuckled as we climbed into the taxi.

"Statue of Liberty, please" said Nora to the driver and Clara's head swivelled to her, a look of shock on her face.

"What?!" she exclaimed. "We're actually going sight-seeing?!"

"Well yeah, that's what I meant by "let's go _sightseeing_"… what did you think we were going to do?" replied Nora icily.

"I thought we're going shopping!" groaned Clara. "That's why I wore my comfy yet hideous shoes!" she moaned, pushing her feet onto Nora's lap. Nora looked at her through heavy eyelids, glaring a hole through her head.

"Clara, I swear if I hear you moan one more time, we won't go shopping at all" said Nora and Clara crossed her arms and stared out of the window obediently but reluctantly.

"She's a child" muttered Nora to me and I bit down on my laughter. The Statue of liberty was breathtaking. _She_ was so tall and powerful though _she _was turning a little green. Next on the agenda was the Rockefeller Center but the hulking Christmas tree wasn't up yet.

"We'll come back in November to see it, before the Christmas break" said Nora and I smiled at her. Then we went to China Town and had lunch in one of the small Cantonese restaurant. I hadn't had much practice with chopsticks and I grappled with some of the more slippery foods to Nora and Clara's amusement. We went straight to the observation deck of the Empire State Building and I stared down in awe at the sprawling city below us. It had so much life in it, I couldn't even begin to compare it with my town in Ohio.

"_Fifth Avenue Time_!" exclaimed Clara with glee. She nearly burst out of the taxi car while it was parking and she bounded down one of the street with me and Nora trying to catch up. We found her chatting enthusiastically with a salesperson in Louis Vuitton, her smile dazzling the poor retailer. I hadn't seen so many overpriced scarves in my life and I started not wanting to check the price tag every time I liked something.

"Something wrong?" asked Nora when she saw me put down a Versace bracelet.

"Oh, nothing" I said, shaking my head. She came closer and rested her chin on my shoulder.

"They're just clothes, Sophie. They don't change anything" she murmured to me again and I nodded.

"I know" I said and she smiled heartily at me. We were walking out of Versace when I stumbled on a loose stone on the footpath and went reeling straight into someone. The person stood unperturbed and graceful as she held me up with her arm. My face burned red as I regained my balance and stepped away.

"Sorry, I tripped on a-" I began but stopped when I caught site of the woman's familiar haughty smile.

"Well hello there, Pup" she said, her tone playful. Veronica's beautiful face stared down at me, her pitch black hair tucked under a grey knitted beret.

"Hi" I mumbled, my cheeks turning even redder. God dammit, couldn't I do at least one thing without something else biting me in the ass. Her radiant face turned to Clara and Nora. Clara looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but here and Nora tried to put on a brave smile.

"Nora, Clara. How are you, my dears?" she said.

"Fine" they both muttered simultaneously. Veronica giggled and turned her mossy green eyes to me.

"Well, well Sophia, how are you enjoying the Academy?" she asked.

"It's wonderful, I like it" I replied politely.

"Great! Being in student council, I make it my job to keep track of our new students" she said proudly. "Speaking of student council, who will you be attending the _Winter Ball_ with?" she asked us, but her question seemed pointed more at Clara.

"What's the _Winter Ball_?" I asked.

"It's a dance we have at the start of November to raise money for a cause" answered Nora.

"This year's is the relief efforts in Sudan" added Veronica. "So, who are you taking, Clara?" asked Veronica, her eyes sparkling with interest.

"I think it's a little early to be asking that, Veronica. We still have three months" answered Clara, her face hardening.

"Oh, I thought you were going with Gregory. Silly me" she said, her words delicately chosen to create the biggest blow and her face showed it. Clara hid all the bustling emotions, but I could see the small flicker of pain across her grey eyes.

"Why would you ever think such a stupid thing, Veronica?" Clara asked with a smile but her voice was filled with malice.

"I know who Sophie is taking" said Nora, trying to draw attention away from the fight.

"Is that true? Who then?" asked Clara, her face becoming excited again. Veronica's face turned to me in curiosity as well. My throat closed up and my cheeks flushed while I pleaded for Nora to shut up.

"Elias Hassani" replied Nora. I shot her a glare, I really didn't want Veronica knowing any of this.

"Oh my god, really?! Sophie, why didn't you tell me?" Clara exclaimed, her eyes widening with enthusiasm.

"I-I umm, I didn't know myself" I answered, my glare hardening on Nora. She smiled apologetically at me.

"Oh dear no, Sophia" murmured Veronica, frowning in shallow disapproval. "He isn't a good choice"

"Have you gone bat-shit, Veronica? He's gorgeous" Clara replied sharply and I almost giggled at the look that crossed Veronicas face.

"Sophia, it's a horrible idea to be dating the School's _Snoop_!" she said, ignoring Clara. "He's gotten in so much trouble with the principle, he has a rather lowly reputation at the Academy"

"What do you mean?" I asked, defensively. "He's nice enough"

"He's been digging around the school since he got here. Nobody likes the look of him and I can't really blame them, he doesn't seem a likely candidate for trust" she commented, wrinkling her nose disdainfully. "You should pick someone else before your reputation is pulled down with his"

"I think I can choose whether or not someone is good for me by myself" I said with an edgy tone. "But thanks for the thought, Veronica"

She looked at me, her eyes hardening but a superior smile spread across her lips. "Whatever you say, Sophia" she replied. "I should probably head back to campus, I've got a lot of work. See you all later" and with that, she bustled off toward a taxi that had stopped at the curb.

"God, I hate her!" hissed Clara under her breath, still afraid that Veronica could hear her. Nora nodded in agreement.

"We should probably head back as well. I don't know about you guys, but I got a lot of work to do" I lied but they still nodded. The reason I wanted to go back was to see Elias. Not once could I push him from my mind since early this morning and on the taxi ride back, my stomach peaked and fell with nerves and anticipation to see him but also a little fear. He couldn't possibly have the reputation Veronica said he did, does he?

When we finally got back to school, I almost ran to his room but I knew I had to take it slow, act as if nothing was wrong while a war between the truth and lies raged on behind my eyes. As we returned to our rooms, I did a quick double take, my eyes searching the boys' hall.

"Soph, what are you doing?" asked Nora from behind me, nearly giving me a heart-attack.

"Ahh, nothing" I said, and walked down the girls' hall, trying to seem as calm as possible but I could feel Nora's black eyes on me the whole time. The room was already clean when we got there and I fell on my made bed, trying to slow my heart beat.

"You're waiting to see him" commented Nora, not looking at me.

"How'd you know?" I asked, not bothering to put up a fight.

"It's written all over you're smitten face. You really like him, don't you?"

"Yeah, kinda" I said, biting my lip and she smiled at my expression.

"Don't you think its going a little fast, Sophie?" she asked, her smile wavering. "You've only known this guy for a week"

"I know, I know but I feel different around him, Nora. Like I don't need to try and look the part" I explained.

"And he feels the same way obviously but I think you should give it time" Nora replied, her eyes cautious.

"Do you think I should be worried about what Veronica said?" I asked, looking down at my feet. I was afraid of what her answer would be.

"I don't know. Veronica isn't always a trustworthy source and she's forever trying to create drama in places where there really needn't be"

"Like today with Clara" I added in and she nodded.

"Exactly. Don't ever get swept in by her, Sophie. You can't trust her" she said, her face severe. "But she may have a point. Heaven's knows I hardly know him, it's almost as if he doesn't really exist at this school"

"But that doesn't mean he's a bad person" I replied, defensively.

"No, of course not" she said, almost like she was trying to prove it to herself. "It's just that if Veronica was serious about his reputation then everything she had said would be true. In this school, students on the Council know more than the School Board"

I nodded, taking in a deep breath. I had to see Elias, I had to clear this up. My stomach turned as I walked to the boys' wing, stopping at his door. I stood there for a bit, deciding whether or not just to turn and run. I sighed and knocked on the door. It clicked open but it wasn't Elias who answered the door, it was his roommate.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Yeah, is Elias here?" I asked. His brown eyes flickered behind him and he squared his shoulders, blocking my view of the room as he leaned his arm against the threshold.

"He's not in" he answered bluntly. His eyes darted around, filled with impatience.

"Well, do you know when he'll be back?" I asked, irritated.

"No, I suggest you get his number, 'cause I haven't seen him in a while. I have nothing to do with him"

"You're his roommate"

"Doesn't matter. I try to stay out of his way. If you've got a problem with him, don't come to me. I'm not part of his dodgy business" he explained.

"I don't have a problem, I-" I began.

"Listen, you seem like a nice girl. I want to help you, but I don't know anything. Please leave" he said, his voice low but pleading. He shut the door before I could say anything else. I took a few steps back and rested myself against the wall. What the hell is going on?

I clenched my fists and slammed them once against the wall behind me. This doesn't make any sense. I saw the boy's eyes, he was scared, Why was he scared?

"Sophia? What are you doing here?" a pleasant voice said and I turned to look at him.

"Aiko…" I murmured, surprised. "Hey"

"Hi, are you okay?" he asked, walking closer. My face must've looked like a mess because as he came closer, his eyes widened.

"Yeah, I was just looking for someone" I muttered.

"Who? Maybe I can help" he said, giving me a smile.

"No, its fine" I said, pushing past him. He grabbed my wrist and I turned to face him.

"What?" I asked, annoyance coloring my tone.

"You're not okay" he said. "Let me help"

"You can't! This has nothing to do with you!" I hissed and ripped my hand back. I started to walk away to my room but I stopped.

"Sophie… I just-" he said.

"I know, Aiko" I said, feeling horribly guilty for reacting the way I did. "I lost my patience. I'm sorry. I'm tired from sightseeing today"

"Oh, and did you like the city?" he asked, smiling happily.

"Yeah, I did" I replied, smiling back, his grin was catching.

"Well, there is this café I was gonna' go to, I was just getting my wallet from my room. Would you like to join me?" he asked, politely. He was dressed like he was going out, with a grey hoody under a navy blazer, black jeans and he had tide his silky black hair up in a messy ponytail.

"Uhh, sure. I'd love to" I said and he gave me a pleasant smile. It was late afternoon and the weather had become cloudy and the wind was icy so I was thankful when Aiko draped his blazer over my shoulders. We went into a trendy little place with black walls with chalk writing, brown seats and white tables with chrome trim. The strong bitter aroma of coffee mixed with the sweet smell of cakes and tarts perfectly and I felt hungry as soon as I walked through the door. We sat in a booth, at the back of the café, a little too intimate for me but Aiko didn't seem to be bothered.

"Can I take your order, sir?" said a blushing waitress. Her eyes ran over Aiko hungrily as he ordered a plain black coffee for himself and a cappuccino for me and a slice of chocolate cake and two teaspoons.

"Will that be all?" She asked, her eyes glancing sidelong at me with some jealousy.

"Yes, thank you" he answered and she took the menus, staring back at our booth as she went.

"This place is pretty cool" I commented, looking at a Rococo painting above us. He He nodded, looking at me with those two black pearly eyes. I shrugged off his jacket in the long silence, but his pleasant smile never wavered.

"Was it Elias Hassani that made you angry?" he asked out of nowhere, and my eyes widened as the met his.

"I don't know who you are talking about" I muttered but he knew he was right. A smirk I had never seen before crossed his face.

"I've seen many people with that face standing in front of his room. He's a troublesome fellow, even though he makes it on the Dean's list every year" says Aiko, stirring his coffee slowly.

"He's not as bad as you think" I said, my voice defensive.

"I don't know him personally, I try to be polite. But he digs around in Student Council business and is a liability to the school" Aiko said with indignation. I had never seen him like this, I didn't like it either.

"Why would anything you do in Student Council be liable?" I asked, glaring at him. His smile vanished all together.

"Student Council runs the school, I don't much like it but that is how it is. There's confidential files of students that he has stolen in the past. I hope you will be able to keep that in confidence" he replied and the smile reappeared.

"I hope you're cappuccino isn't cold" he said and dipped his pinky into my foam and licked it off. I stared at him in surprise. He looked at me and sighed.

"I realize you like him, but it would be better if you just-" he began.

"You don't know him" I said, glaring at Aiko. "You don't get to share your opinion"

"I'm trying to help you, as a friend" he replied, his voice staying pleasant as always. "I didn't mean to offend you"

"Its fine" I waved him off. I finished my cappuccino quickly and removed five dollars from my wallet.

"That's not necessary" he said.

"I think it is" I replied icily and scooted out of the booth. "Keep the change"

"Please don't go" he said, his voice a little pleading. "We'll change subject"

"I have somewhere I have to be" I said to him as I walked away and through the door. The waitress can keep him company. As much as his beautiful sincere face seemed to arouse guilt in my stomach, I wouldn't turn back. I found my own way back to the Academy, in the chilly dusk. My heart began to beat harder as I walked the soaked path to the dorms, the feeling that someone was watching stuck to my skin like fine mist. As I got nearer to the building, I started jogging, then running until I was in the safety of the dorm hall. It was much busier inside, students were now leaving their rooms to go to dinner, one of them –who was leaning against the banister- caught my eye. I wasn't going to go near him, not until I figured out what to say first but Elias' burning eyes made me forget completely. He began to go up the stairs, then turned his head slightly and motioned me to follow. Nobody noticed him return to his room or me trail a few steps behind him. When I had quietly slipped into his room, he shut the door and all light escaped the room accept for the soft glow of a laptop on the desk. The bluish light made the dark circles under his eyes all the more noticeable, it seemed that he hadn't slept in days.

"Adam told me you came here this afternoon" he said, his voice only above a whisper.

"I'm surprised you know his name" I replied bitterly. After a long silence, I finally opened my mouth. "Who are you?" I asked and his eyes widened.

"You know who I am" he said defensively.

"I thought I did until everyone told me the same thing, the same horrible warning to stay away from you" I retorted.

"You shouldn't believe idle gossip" he muttered.

"Then the stories about you stealing confidential files is a lie?" I asked and his head turned to me in shock.

"Who told you?!" he demanded.

"It doesn't matter who told me, what matters is that I have been making a fool of myself all day, by defending you and for what? So you could only prove the rumors to be true?" I stipulated.

"I was suspended from school for a month after stealing a confidential file on Remy Kerr, the student who had disappeared on the Academy's grounds. When I returned, I was to stop my inquiry into his disappearance and never ask about it again" he explained, his eyes looking past me. "That was in 10th grade. Since then, I've tried to keep to myself"

"Then why are you continuing the query of what happened to him?" I asked, incredulous.

"Because the police did nothing! And the parents didn't even bother with an investigation! One swift meeting with Dean DuPont and all was covered up" he hissed. "There is something not right and I want to know what is going on!"

"You need to stop with this, Elias. Your reputation is going down the drain" I explained.

"Unlike every other pompous brat that attends here, I don't give a damn about my reputation. And I thought that you weren't like them either but it looks like I was wrong" he muttered, looking at me with sad eyes.

"If I care so much about my reputation , why do you think I've been defending you all this time?" I asked him. The unanswered question hung there in front of us, like a sleeping mutt. Instead of answering, he took one step closer to me, then another and another, until I could feel his breath on nose. His smouldering hazel eyes made my head dip and spin as I tried to focus. Suddenly, his lips brushed against mine, quick and smooth, like he was testing the waters. And then, in complete synchronisation, my arms wrapped around his broad shoulders and his arms wrapped tightly around my waist as our lips met again. I tried to pull away, but every muscle in my body had already been taken in and I could no longer come up with reasons to stop myself from kissing him. My fingers twirled in his hair as our kissing became ambitious and greedy and I felt embarrassed at the sound of air whistling desperately through my nose. I didn't break the embrace though, I only moved closer, until there was no longer any space between me and him, until I could the contours of his chest against my own. Fire was pumping through my veins, setting every nerve to flames. One of his hands slipped down to my thigh and he cradled it, moving me closer the wall. His kiss became slower, deeper as his lips moved with mine, rather than against. His mouth broke from me like an air supply and he stared at me.

"You have the most sincerest eyes" he whispered to me and then ran his thumb over my lips and along my jaw. I smirked, trying to get the red sheen from my cheeks. His face became sad again and he looked away.

"I'm sorry that I haven't been the person you thought me to be" he murmured, looking down at his feet. "I just feel like there's something I can do, something I can change for Kristin Mason" he said, finally meeting my eyes. "She always looks so sad…"

My hands slipped down from his hair, to one on each cheek. "You have a good heart, Elias. I'm sorry for doubting that" I said to him and his white smile appeared. "But I don't want to be left out of these things anymore" I said, my voice a little stronger. "I want to help"

His eyes widened, and he began to shake his head but I held it tightly in my grip, forcing him to look at me. "I want to help and if you don't let me, I leave the Academy, I leave New York and I leave you" I declared.


	5. Chapter 5

"Do you have any idea what your giving up? I don't even think you've thought this through" he said, sighing. He was sitting on his bed. Adam was sitting across from him on his own bed, looking at his hands. I had been locked up with these two for an hour now. Adam had already apologised for acting so curtly, he hadn't known then who I was.

"This isn't something we want to drag you into. If this goes downhill like last time, you'll be in trouble like the rest of us" added Adam. "Do you really want to ruin your future just to be in the loop?"

"I'll go on as I normally do, move back to Ohio and go back to my old school. And who says this will go downhill? Guys, I know you think I'll be just a liability-" I began.

"Nobody is saying you're a liability" chipped Elias.

"No, but I know you're thinking it. You need someone with street smarts, and I have those. Don't think of this as a relationship, its only business" I said.

"That's hard to believe considering our "predicament"" Elias muttered. That's what he is calling our kiss, it was a little insulting.

"I'd appreciate it if you'd stop calling it that" I said to him, annoyance colouring my tone. He gave me an apologetic look and turned his stare to Adam. Adam shrugged back at him.

"Are you sure you want to do this? It's practically social suicide once someone finds out your with him. If it gets back to the Student Council, you're screwed and so are we. The Dean will get involved and everything" Adam reasoned. "You could lose your friends"

"Nobody will find out, I promise. You've been able to keep your cooperation under the radar, I can do the same. I know this isn't a game and my future is on the line but I really am interested in this, I want to help" I replied.

"Can't you just forget everything, especially me. I don't want to take you down with me Soph" said Elias, his tone dark.

"I don't care, Elias. You can take me to wherever, I won't back down" I said. He gave a slight nod to Adam and a small smile spread across Adam's face.

"Welcome to the team, Soph" he said, excited to my surprise. "It'll be fun having someone less grumpy onboard"

"Thanks" I chuckled, giving him an awkward one-armed hug. Elias ran one hand through his disheveled hair and embraced me a little more privately then Adam had. The smell of his cologne was intoxicating as my nose touched his neck.

"Welcome" he murmured into my ear. It wasn't as optimistic as Adam's welcome but it was still comforting. I hummed a _thank you_ back. I heard Adam clear his throat uncomfortably.

"Is this going to take long, because I was kind of hoping on moving onto the next step" he said and we laughed.

Elias took out a pair of reading glasses from his bedside cabinet and put them on as I sat down next to him. He started typing busily on his laptop.

"Okay, what do we start with?" he asked.

"Well, we haven't had a chance to talk to Kristin yet. She's really important to this whole thing" said Adam.

"Yeah but every chance we get, she's either not around or her friends are playing bodyguard" sighed Elias.

"That's because her friends don't want her around any guys. Apparently she's too "frail"" replied Adam.

"Then what about a girl?" I said and both their heads turned to me. Both their eyes were asking for an explanation so I continued. "I could become friends with her, maybe learn more"

"We don't have that kind of time" said Elias. "I don't think she talks to anyone about it"

"Then let's leave her on the back burner" said Adam. "What did you find out this afternoon?"

"Nothing too palpable. Only an old address to his best friend's apartment in Manhattan and a name. We're looking for a _Joshua Alcott_" said Elias. "I'll pull up old yearbooks and see if I can get a picture of him"

"You should also check his what Remy wanted to do for a living on his senior page" I said.

"Nah, it won't help us. His father expected him to work for their business" said Adam. "If Mr. Kerr found out that his son had other plans, he would lose his trust fund. Remy couldn't possibly write about his dreams on his senior page"

"Doesn't his dreams count for more than some trust fund?" I asked, incredulous.

"Not when his trust fund was over 7 million dollars" replied Elias, icily. "Remy Kerr was an artist, you'd think he'd make that kind of money on a painter's salary? He may have been a dreamer but he wasn't an idiot"

"What else are we missing?" asked Adam.

"We haven't had an alibi from Gregory DuPont yet" said Elias.

"Wait, what? Why would you need an alibi from him?" I asked, frowning.

"Because Gregory is our number one suspect, Sophie" said Elias. He wouldn't look me in the eye as he said it.

"He can't possibly be. His father is the dean for god's sakes!" I retorted.

"Dean DuPont had done nothing when Remy Kerr disappeared. The case was closed right after he spoke with Remy's parents. That leads us to believe that he was covering up for his son" explained Adam.

"And what was his motive?!" I demanded.

"Remy Kerr and Gregory ran for Student Council President at the same time, Remy won by somewhat of a landslide. No one would believe it if Gregory was appointed president if his father messed with the votes. Remy then appointed him as vice president" explained Elias.

"I still don't see how that could give him a motive for killing Remy!" I retorted.

"Everyone knew Gregory would apply to Dartmouth after he graduated. If he were elected council president, he'd be the first eleventh grader ever to be elected. Something like that on a transcript would change everything, especially when Dartmouth has school council presidents applying every year" explained Elias. "The interesting part is Gregory never seemed to like Dartmouth, he wanted to go to Stanford instead, that was at least what Elliot had told Adam"

"He told me that a few month ago at a dinner party with a few families from the school" said Adam. "I had asked him about his choices in colleges and then Gregory's"

"Then why would Gregory want to apply for Dartmouth? His uncle isn't the kind of man to force Gregory to do what he wants" I explained.

"We don't know yet" murmured Elias. "All we do know is that he's been avoiding me ever since the accident"

"Everyone's been avoiding you" I replied.

"Except for you" he said. I didn't reply, my head was too busy trying to comprehend the idea of Gregory could kill someone. Gregory could not be able to hurt anyone.

"Then let me ask him" I said. "I know him and he trusts me"

"I don't think that's a good idea" said Elias, rubbing his forehead.

"She could be our only way in" said Adam. "Let's give it a try"

Elias sighed but gave one nod. "Fine, but don't give anything away, we only have one shot at this" he cautioned me.

Two whole weeks passed without any contact with Gregory. The first week he was working on a presentation for Geography and on the weekend they had a fencing tournament. The next week he was planning with the Fundraising committee for the Winter Ball and on the weekend he went to see his grandparents at their estate in Vermont. It's already Monday now, and I haven't gotten anywhere. That and the fact that I haven't been able to come near Elias for those two weeks, because he didn't want anyone thinking that we were linked until I found out about Gregory. I had to lie to Clara and Nora which wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. Clara accepted the lie as everything else, easily but Nora, even though she had shrugged it off nonchalantly, something in her eyes told me she didn't buy it. Whether or not she did, didn't bother me, I trusted her enough to know when to keep quiet and when not to. I was now sitting on the front steps of the Fourth years' dorms, waiting for Gregory to come back from classes. I had skipped out on last period art so I could put away my stuff and come here. The bell had gone a few minutes ago and students were now looking at me as they made their way inside.

"Are you waiting for someone?" asked a girl I didn't know. She had a kind smile, with blond wavy hair and a freckled face.

"Ah, yeah. They'll be here in a few" I said and she nodded, going inside. After an hour passed, I dug out my art book from my bag and started doodling on it. I hadn't expect him to take this long, had I forgotten one of his previous commitments? I had pried Aiko all morning to find out the student council schedule, he was happy to help after our recent spat.

"Sophia?" said a deep voice and I looked to see Gregory's confused small smile spread across his face. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh hey, Gregory" I said, trying to sound as surprised as I should be without sounding too amazed. I had already practiced what I was going to say, I just hoped he'd reply the way I expected he would. "I was waiting for Clara but she said she'd only be back by 6. I told her I'd wait for her" I recited. I had made sure Clara had a previous engagement so we wouldn't have any unwanted run-ins.

"But that's almost two hours away, are you really going to wait here that long?" he doubted.

"Well yeah, I'm too comfortable to get up anyways" I replied, which wasn't completely true, the cement steps were doing heinous acts to my backside and my back was stiff from leaning over my art book.

"Why don't you come upstairs to my dorm room while you wait, that doesn't look very comfortable" he said, wrinkling his nose. Yes! Exactly the response I was hoping for, I was better at this then I thought. Elias will swallow his words.

"Thanks, Gregory" I said, as I stood up and I followed him inside. The set up was basically the same as our dorms, boys on the left, girls on the right. His dorm was one of the first rooms and he unlocked the door. He left the door open as he sat on his bed. I chose to sit in the small alcove, leaving the door open just in case he meant for it to be like that.

"Where's your roommate?" I asked. I didn't want anyone interrupting us.

"Oh, Alexander is at swim practice" he said. "How are you? I haven't seen you in a while"

"I'm fine. How was your grandparents?" I asked.

"They were fine I suppose" he answered curtly.

"Did you look at universities when you were in Vermont?" I asked and he chuckled darkly.

"No, no. They don't want me going to Vermont" he said, his voice a little tense.

"I thought college was your choice. Where do your grandparents want you to go?" I asked, looking at him. He cleared his voice and bit his bottom lip.

"Well, it is but I have some sort of a deal with them" he explained, his eyes turning dark.

"Deal? What do you mean?" I pried, I had to feeling I was getting closer.

"Well, if I get into Dartmouth, I get a reward" he said. "I've been planning to go to Dartmouth since I was fourteen , since the agreement had been set up"

"So "reward" as in you get your trust fund early, or…?" I tempted. I was waiting for it, this reward that could have given him the motive to kill Remy Kerr. Could it have been more money? Or maybe the family estate? Family fortune? I wish I knew how these rich kids reward systems worked. I felt a little fear at the idea of his reply and also a little excitement. Was I about to throw Gregory into the lion pit? Did I want to?

"No, I would be intended to marry who ever I want" he said, and a small pleasant smile played on his lips. Suddenly I felt very guilty about what I was doing, how I was digging around in people's dreams and secret desires. My mouth fell agape as I stared at him dumbfounded.

"I should go" I muttered, getting up from the alcove.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, wide eyed, standing up too.

"Yes, I just got a text from Clara. She's waiting for me outside" I replied, hastily walking to do the door.

"Really? I didn't see you check your phone" he said, his voice rising in surprise.

"I felt it vibrate in my pocket, I know it's her" I garbled, trying to ease the doubt I saw plain on his face. "Really, Gregory, I'm fine" I shouted to him when I was at the end of the hall. Shit, shit, shit, I may as well have_ Liar_ tattooed to my forehead. I felt so grimy and mean for doing that, I should have never done that. Gregory is my friend, well was my friend. Wait until he works out why I was really there. A small thought brightened up my terrible mood as I walked back to my dorm building. I would be able to see Elias again.

As soon as my foot fell on those stairs and I turned to go down the boy's hall, my heart surged up and the nerves set in. I nearly bolted to the door, edgy giddiness making me feel unpredictable. The door opened and I saw his hazel eyes crinkle at the sides as he smiled and I could no longer hold it in. I wrapped my arms around his neck, lifting myself to his lips. I inhaled his cologne, his strong arms wrapped around my waste, so tight, I could hardly move. He broke away, a wild smile crossing his face as he took a breather.

"Whoa!" he said, blinking. "Let's just settle business first, shall we?" he said and I gave a nod, my cheeks burning red as I closed the door behind me. "What did you learn?"

"It was his grandparents forcing him to go to Dartmouth, not the Dean" I explained. "They've controlled most of his life. They made a deal with him"

"Which is? More money I suppose" he speculated.

Surprisingly no. The deal is that if he gets into Dartmouth, he's free to marry anyone to his liking" I said, watching his reaction. He frowned and then it set in.

"So it's true! Clara and him did have an arranged marriage. Does that mean he plans to set that up again?" he asked himself, scratching the stubble on his chin.

"I don't know, does it matter? He's innocent" I said. Elias' eyes turned to me.

"Why do you think that?" he said, genuinely confused.

"Because, it's not for money or something selfish. He's not the kind of person to kill someone" I explained, my voice becoming defensive.

"It still doesn't make him any less suspicious, Soph. He remains a suspect until we can get an alibi" he answered. "Did he tell you anything else?"

"No, nothing" I murmured. Elias moved back to me, a smile spreading over his face. His fingers brushed against my cheek and I pulled away. His eyebrow cocked and a hurt look crossed his eyes.

"You need to get over your emotions for these people. It won't help you or us if you don't" he said, his tone a little cold.

"I know him, Elias. He wouldn't do it" I said. "And he's my friend"

"And I kept things from you when I was your friend" he said. "Gregory could be doing the same"

"You don't know him" I said, shrugging away from him. I turned, opening his door to leave.

"Don't go, Sophia" he said, but I ignored him and closed the door behind me.

That night, I skipped dinner. Nora looked at me worriedly, as she sat on the corner of my bed.

"Are you sick?" she asked, putting her hand on my forehead.

"No, just tired I think" I murmured to her.

"You're not hot" she said, putting the back of her hand on my forehead. She gave me a small smile and asked "Is it Elias?"

"No. I no longer see him anymore" I replied, trying to keep my voice even. I didn't want her knowing we were together.

"Oh no" she whined, her dark eyes becoming sympathetic. "Soph, why?"

"He's just not who I thought he was. It's okay though, I can do without him" I said, giving her an encouraging smile.

"But who will take you to the Winter Ball?" she asked.

"I don't know. I'm sure I'll find someone. I don't mind going alone though. Who are you taking?" I asked. I hadn't thought much about the Winter ball, I've been a little distracted.

"Dylan and I are going, but as friends" she replied but she blushed a little. I let the subject drop and scrambled under my bedcovers. She stood up and turned off my bed light. I slept late on Saturday, until the clock reached 11.30 and I could no longer ignore my rumbling stomach. I rose slowly, took a long shower and dressed warmly, wrapping a _Forzieri_ knit scarf that Nora had given me. I was sick of being locked up in this school and had the urge to explore New York City. I decided to go alone, Nora was at Photography club and I rung Clara, only to hit her voice mail. I braved the city streets, taking in the new smells. Some were repulsive, a mixture of gasoline and soggy rubbish. Others were the bitter aroma of coffee and sizzling eggs, which made my stomach groan more. I stopped over at a small stall that sold breakfast burritos and coffee, I bought one of each and trudged across _Park_ and _Fifth Avenue_ into _Central Park_. It was huge, literally the biggest park I've ever been in. That's not saying much, but I swear, it was humungous. I chose a bench close to the exit because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find my out again. The smell of gasoline and trash couldn't find their way into this fresh piece of ground, with thick, green trees, creating a jade tint as cold light filtered in through the canopies. I ate and drank quickly, trying to think of what to do next. Most of my day was already over but I there was still some time to spend. I didn't have enough money on me to take a taxi too far, I didn't know the city well either. As I scrambled for ideas, I hadn't noticed somebody taking a seat next to me until they spoke.

"Penny for your thoughts?" asked a velveteen voice, warming me up quicker than the coffee. My eyes met his smouldering hazel ones and I couldn't help but smile.

"Hi, Elias" I murmured and he leaned in, only letting his lips brush quickly against mine.

"Why are you out alone?" he asked me.

"I was sick of being at school. I thought I should get out for a bit. You?" I replied, curiosity clear on my voice.

"Went to the bookshop where the photograph was taken" he said, his voice low.

"The photograph with the girl that looks like me?" I questioned, intrigued. He gave a small nod, looking at a middle-aged couple that passed us.

"I should probably leave. We don't want someone seeing us like this" he murmured to me, his eyes apologetic. I gave a strong nod but I couldn't help but frown. His eyes became sad and he shifted a little closer to me.

"I know this hasn't been easy, tip- toeing around each other like we mean nothing. I miss you" he said, gazing up at me under his eyelashes.

"I understand, Elias. I signed up for this after all" I explained, though it didn't make me feel any better. He sighed, looking at another person passing buy with a small dog on a leash.

"Here's a plan. Meet me in front of our dorm building at 7.30 tonight. I will have a cab waiting for our devious escape" he said, giving me a sly wink and I giggled, like a school girl to my embarrassment.

"Are you sure? What if someone saw us?" I asked.

"Well, I guess that you'll just have to use those street smarts of yours, my dear" he said, smiling roguishly. I pushed him lightly and he stared at me for a bit, smiling. Then without a word, he gave me a peck on the cheek and left through the exit I was sitting by. It was hard not to stare at him as he left so I stood up and started walking down the park's wide paths. I saw a girl with pale blond hair struggle after a runaway scarf swirling in the wind. It scraped over the ground and wrapped itself around my leg before I could reach down to grab it. I pulled it off, dusting off wet leaves and sand as I made my way to her.

"Lose some-" I began but my voice caught in my throat when I saw it was Kristin.

"Yeah thanks" she said, giving me a weak smile. Her voice was harsh, like she had to clear her throat.

"Uh.. no problem" I murmured, trying to free myself of that dazed look.

"Hey, you're the scholarship girl, aren't you?" she said, gesturing to me lightly. Her brown eyes were big and innocent, hiding behind her thick blond bang.

"Yeah, I am. My name's Sophie" I introduced myself, sticking out my hand. She reached out and shook it, her powdery hand was stronger then it seemed.

"Kristin Mason" she said, and I smiled at her. I finally had the most important part of the puzzle, I couldn't let her slip away.

"It's freezing, isn't it?" I commented, trying to make idle banter. Hopefully she didn't see through my lame attempt at conversation.

"Uh yeah, a little out of season for New York, windy too" she agreed, nodding to herself.

"Nothing like Ohio, it'd be still a little sunny there" I mentioned and her eyes lit up a little with curiosity.

"You're from Ohio?" she said and I gave a nod.

"Yeah, from Westerville" I replied and she smiled at me. "You?"

"Moved here from Seattle a few years ago. Weather's not that much different" she said, chuckling.

"Nice, I always wanted to go to Seattle" I stated. "That or California"

"Yeah, yeah,_ Cali_ looks great" she said, gesturing with her hands again. "I'm thinking of going to UCLA"

"Oh, awesome" I said, trying to keep the conversation going. There was a bit of an awkward silence though until she turned to look behind her. When she looked back at me, her eyes were a little paranoid. She grunted and rolled her eyes.

"What's wrong?" I asked, looking behind her. There were two girls that seemed to be looking for someone.

"My friends. Want to get out of here?" she asked, her eyes insistent.

"Uhhh…okay?" I muttered and she grabbed my hand and started yanking me toward the exit again. "Hey whoa, where are we going?" I inquired.

"To my car" she said and a cocked my eyebrow at her. This was definitely not going the way I thought it would. She pulled me to the road, in front of a black sedan with black tinted windows. She pulled the door open and pushed me inside and she followed.

"Dolton, go to _Cinema Café_" she ordered to driver and we started moving further and further away from Central Park. I leaned back, wide eyed and unable to comprehend what just happened or why I was sitting in a stranger's car, heading towards a pricey café. I felt her eyes on my and I tried to give her in encouraging look but I no longer had any idea what face I was making then.

"Well, that was… interesting" I said, my voice going squeaky.

"Sorry for dragging you off, I'm not as weird as I seem" she said, letting out a nervous laugh.

"No problem" I said, smirking a little. What Elias would do to be here in my place, it's just too lucky. "Why were you running from your friends though?"

"I haven't been on my own for a very long time" she explained. "When I wake up, there's one. When I leave for class, there's one. When I go for dinner, there' another one. When I call a taxi, there's one. When I-"

"Yeah yeah, "there's one". I get it. Why don't you ask them just to back off?" I inquired.

"They don't listen. They think I need them around 24-7, but I don't. I'm not _Helen Keller_" she ranted, sighing. "You must already know why they are like that"

"I do. It's hard to side-step idle gossip" I murmured. "I'm sorry for your loss, Kristin"

"It's fine, I've learned to deal with it. It's not that I don't miss him, but me and him were never good for each other" she explained. "His parents and my parents were forcing us together, but we just didn't attract, kind of like same charged magnets"

"Oh" I commented shortly, trying to reign in my curiosity. "Did you like someone else?"

"No, not really. I had just started going to school here" she said. "But Remy did, I think. I bet he was dating her behind his parent's backs as well"

"Weren't you angry? Even if you didn't love him, it's kind of a _dick_ move" I said and she gave a small shrug.

"We became good friends, we were forced to converse by our parents so we made lemonade out of lemons I suppose. He'd come to me frequently asking for advice about women" she explained, a small smile appearing when it seemed she was remembering a good memory. I felt that I had gotten enough out of her for now, then. I didn't want to push too much, or else she could realize what I was actually doing. The sedan stopped in front of a little café, looking out to a busy street. It wasn't as modern as I was expecting, but it had a nice vibe and inside it was crowded with people, are murmuring to each other, some laughing and the walls were covered with 50's movie posters.

We sat in a booth and she ordered two cappuccinos while I gingerly spun my thumbs around each other.

"So what were you doing in the park?" she asked, smiling.

"Oh, I had to get out of school for a bit, see some of New York while I'm still here" I replied. She nodded with a smile. We spoke for an hour or so until I felt like it was time to get back. I had a pile of work left at the dorm and I had to start getting ready for tonight. Butterflies bounced around in my stomach at the thought of seeing Elias and being alone with him. That thought followed me back to the academy with a small smile on my face. When I got to the room, Nora was there, typing on her laptop.

"Hey, where have you been?" she asked.

"In Central Park, I got lost for a bit" I said, consciously not mentioning Kristin. "What have you been up to?"

"Work. Something came for you by the way" she said, focused on the screen.

"What?" I asked surprised, looking around the room.

"On your bed" she explained and I saw the small white box lying there neatly. As I reached for it I was hoping that it was from Elias and the butterflies reappeared again. I took of the top and saw that it was the bud of a white rose. I smiled and took it out, turning it between my fingers.

"That's beautiful," said Nora, staring up at it as well. "Whose it from?" she asked, suspiciously. "Do you have a secret admirer?"

"I don't know" I said, but I was sure it was Elias. I looked back at the box and saw that there was a small piece of paper taped inside. I ripped it out and opened it slowly and I froze. It wasn't from Elias after all.

"Oh my god" I murmured, swallowing the fear that was bubbling up my throat.

"What? What's wrong, Soph?" asked Nora, getting up from the chair. I didn't know what to do, if I should hide it and lie or tell her. Before I could decide, she had cleaved it from my hands.

"_Every rose withers, your time may be up_?!" she exasperated. "Who the hell is this from?!" I just shrugged, feeling the blood drain from my face.

"Sophie, You need to report this!" Nora said, tugging at my arm.

"I- I don't know…" I said.

"Don't know what? This person is threatening you! You could be in danger!" she justified frantically, a disposition I rarely saw her in.

"It could just be a prank, Nora" I said, grabbing the note back. "That or some horrible trick, either way I don't want to make a big deal out of this"

"Its already a huge deal, Sophie! Some sick Freak out there is threatening you and you aren't going to do anything about it?"

"No, not until I get a handle on things, okay? We should wait to see if something else happens before we just freak out" I retorted, pushing the white rose back into the box until it was a mangled. She grunted, falling onto her bed.

"This is insane, you need to report this" she said, looking at me severely. "What if there is no next thing, what if they just end up killing you"

"Don't be dramatic, Nora" I said, waving her off. I could feel the tears welling up in the corners of my eyes, why am I crying?

"Don't tell me not to be dramatic, Soph! You can't just shrug this off, you can't take a chance on a thing like this" she snapped angrily. I rubbed my temples and sat down as well. There was nothing I could do for now, I had to see Elias. Maybe he could tell me what to do next. Faces popped into my head of all the possible people that could have sent this, the list was uncomfortably long. There was Macy, Kristin's friends, Veronica, maybe even Gregory. I tried to shake that electric feeling of panic that filled my limbs and made my heart pound as I turned to Nora. I had to tell her about Elias, I had to tell her about everything.

"Nora, I've been hiding things from you" I murmured and she looked at me but her eyes were not filled with surprise.

"I know" she said but she didn't seem angry.

"I didn't want to, but I didn't want you getting involved with all of this" I explained and she gave me an encouraging smile. I wiped the tears away, trying to get a hold of my emotions.

"I know, Sophie. You don't have to explain yourself" she said and I was suddenly very thankful for having her as friend. I told her everything then, about Elias and Adam, about Kristin, Macy and what I had done to Gregory, everything. She took it all in, nodding every now and then but she never interrupted.

"You have a date tonight" she said with a smile when I finished and I sighed.

"Does that even matter now?" I questioned.

"Damn right it does! It's important that you and Elias have some time to yourselves, you need to tell him about the death threat" she said, squeezing my shoulder. "I'll keep all of this a secret, Sophie. I promise"

"I know" I said, smiling. I didn't know what we would be doing tonight so Nora just picked out a simple black dress and heels for me with a plain Burberry trench coat. I put my hair up and looked at myself in the mirror. I was angry that the box ruined my mood completely; I almost didn't feel like going at all. Nora helped me sneak out unnoticed and at 7. 30, I was making my way down the steps of our dorm. He was at the end, smiling up at me.

"Good evening, Miss Hanigan " he said and I giggled as he swept me into his arms and kissed me lightly on the lips. I missed him, the warmth of his hands and the earthy smell of his skin. Being with him then made me forget about all my problems, about the fear that had shaken me before, I felt safe and sound with him. He was dressed nicely as well in a navy blue suit and a pale lavender shirt.

"Let's go, shall we?" he said and took my hand. We walked to the gate and climbed into a cab, waiting for us. The drive was short and I tried to focus on what Elias was saying but my mind was preoccupied on how to tell him about the threat. We stopped at a place called _Daniel_ and by the look of the people going inside, I was definitely dressed right. He opened the door for me, led me in and took my coat at the door, and the whole time I stared into the distance, my thoughts drifting in and out. I couldn't even recall how we got to the table.

"Are you alright?" he asked, after ordering wine.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm just-" I began but stopped. "I'm lying to you. No, I'm not alright"

His eyes burned as he stared me, laying his hand over mine. "Did I do something wrong? Do you not want to eat here?" he asked, unease forming in his eyes.

"No, no, Elias. You've been wonderful. Some things have just come up" I said, tip toeing around the truth.

"As in?" he asked, but the conversation stopped when the waitress came with the wine. She poured and left it by the table and Elias turned back. "Sorry, you were saying?"

"I received a threat today" I said, the words came out all wrong but at least they were out. His eyebrows rose but he didn't quite react as much as I thought he would.

"A note or…?" he asked.

"The bud of a rose. It was white and the message was… just…terrifying I guess" I said, feeling the burn in my throat and the sting of tears in the corners of my eyes. He squeezed my hand.

"I am not sure what to say to make the memory go away, I wish I could. But I will try and make you feel safe again" he said, his hazel eyes were so earnest. "Who ever sent it feels threatened themselves, I doubt its anyone that has nothing to do with Remy's disappearance"

"You think? I don't know who it could be. All I know is I made a big breakthrough today with the leads" I replied and his eyes turned curious.

"How? What did you find?" he asked, his voice a little eager.

"I met Kristin in the park and we got to talking-" I began.

"Kristin? Oh my god, this is huge, what did she tell you?"

"She told me that her and Remy were only friends. That and that Remy was seeing someone else, someone his parents didn't know about and probably didn't approve of either" I said and a small smile appeared on his lips.

"This changes things" he said, scratching his chin. He cleared his throat and looked at me, a worried look on his face. "I don't want you going out alone anymore, okay? Don't walk around the city alone, none of that. Clearly someone must've seen you with her, someone who doesn't want her telling you anything, that and they also know about you and me" he explained and I nodded. "We should talk about this later with James, not now. This is just me and you, no more talk of disappearances" he said and I smiled.

"Is your dad coming next week?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah he is. A couple of my friends are coming too" I explained and his head titled to the side inquisitively. Next week, Saturday is the Autumn Gala where friends and family are invited to the school to visit and for tours. I didn't want to invite my old friends from Ohio but my dad had already done so. I was nervous about them visiting me and what they would think of the school and the students and what the students would think of them.

"I'd like to meet them" he said smiling. "Then again, we probably shouldn't be seen together" and his smile vanished.

I nodded, sighing. "My father can meet you though, he wants to" said Elias and I nearly choked on a piece of broccoli in my mouth.

"What? I don't know…" I said, wiping my mouth with a napkin. "People might see us"

"I can arrange a lunch with him, away from the school. He understands our predicament" replied Elias, smiling at me cheerfully. "Unless you don't want to meet him, you don't have to"

"No, no. I'd like to, is your mom coming as well?" I asked and he nodded. Meeting Elias' parents wasn't really how I planned Saturday to go but I accepted my fate, I suppose that was part of being in a relationship like this. We spoke a little of my art class and about school and then a little of Westerville.

"What are your friends like? The ones that are visiting" he asked.

"Like me I guess. Though, Arizona is a little loud, always perky, she'd get along well with Clara" I said and he nodded, smirking. "And Pete is quiet but kind, he's like a brother to me"

"Well, I'm sure everyone will like them if their like you" he said and I shook my head.

"You'd be surprised" I said and he chuckled.

After dinner, we went straight back to the academy, Elias didn't want to be out too late, in case someone was either watching us or we were caught coming back by the hall monitors. I felt as though parts of my life, parts of my experiences were being controlled by my choice to join them, I couldn't stay out late with my boyfriend, I couldn't hold his hand in public, I couldn't be safe alone anymore. I knew that there would be trouble; I knew the consequences from the get go, but when it came down to it, I never thought it would be this frustrating. A part of me regretted becoming part of all this, I wished that I just minded my own business, chose not to go any further with Elias and lived my last two years here at the Academy like a normal teenage girl. But, another part of me, a much bigger part wanted to do this, yearned to do it. I wanted to do something reckless, something dangerous and fascinating, to have a memory that would be special among all the others. As Elias held my hand in the taxi back to the Academy, playing with my fingers as he did, the regret shrunk and I knew that I wouldn't have been able to get him out of my head if I never chose to get involved in the first place.

He dropped me off by my door, leaned in and kissed me. It was not as rushed as usual, not as hungry but still equally blissful. It took a lot not to press myself against him and let my arms pull him in deeper and deeper until we were fighting for air, somehow I felt that it would be better to take things slow, keep a little for later I suppose. I opened the door, noticing that Nora was still awake, lying in her and reading a book. She looked up, closed the book miraculously and sat up.

"How was it?" she asked, her voice tinged with excitement and curiosity. This pleased me, at least I would be able to experience this, the choice I had made had no effect on my relationship with Nora and the capability of gossiping about a date.

"Great, I think we needed that" I said, kicking of the shoes she lent me.

"You guys hardly spend anytime together. You should go out more, maybe make an effort to see each other. Relationships tend to fall apart if the couple don't see each other enough" she said and I nodded.

"I guess, but we don't really need that. I mean, its not like I don't miss him. I really do want to see him more but I can control it and so can he. We just work that way" I said and she shrugged.

"Where'd you guys go? What did you talk about?" she asked.

"We went to this place called Daniel's. It was really nice. We spoke about stuff" I said.

"What kind of stuff?" she asked, persistent.

"He wants me to meet his parents next week" I said and her eyes widened a little.

"Are you nervous? Isn't it a little soon?"

" I don't know, I've never been in a relationship like this. I feel like its about the right time but I don't know… I guess I am nervous" I said, biting my lip.

"I know and I'm sorry, I feel foolish now" he says and I giggle.


End file.
